100 RanxGin Drabbles
by Dragen Eyez
Summary: 100 themes in RanxGin drabbles. They're all vaguely connected, chronologically. Updated DAILY.
1. Introduction

Man oh man, it's been a long time since I've written any fan fiction. Ah well, it can't be helped, I suppose. Anyway, I was reading a 100 theme RangikuxGin challenge, so I figured, what the heck, why not? I really need to get into the practice of writing again, and drabbles are nice and short. One a day, and I'll be so used to writing, I'll work on my novel more often, ne? Well, I hope, anyway. At any rate, the drabbles will all be vaguely connected, chronologically. Well, we'll see how it goes!

**Disclaimer:** I don't own Bleach, all hail Kubo Tite. I'm also making nooo money off this. Otherwise, I wouldn't need to start job training as a waitress tomorrow. Blah.

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**1. Introduction**

"Eat up," someone said, pressing something to her cracked lips.

After a long moment, Rangiku bit into something chewy, and good. So good after having gone so long feeling so terribly empty, hungry.

"If you can collapse due to hunger, you must have reiatsu," the boy said.

Rangiku looked up at him, saw strange silver hair, and a wide smile. Finally, she rasped out, "You… too…?"

"Yup. Me too," he said. "Ichimaru Gin. Nice to meetcha."

"Gin… That's a weird name."

He shrugged and pushed another of the strange, wrinkled things against her mouth. She ate obligingly, seeing he carried a small armful.

At the third one, she said, "What is this?"

"Dried persimmons."

"They're really good," Rangiku said, sitting up slowly. "The best thing I've ever had." From the kindest person she could remember; no on had ever given her food before.

The smiling boy tried one. "Yeah. What's your name?"

"Matsumoto Rangiku."

"Thirsty?" At Rangiku's nod, he straightened. "Come on. I have some water."

He handed Rangiku another persimmon when she was standing. Suddenly, Rangiku wondered if everything would be all right after all.

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So, whatcha think? Reviewer love truly encourages me.


	2. Complicated

How terrible, day 2 and I nearly forgot to do this. But I did! I'm glad. Doing these themes is pretty interesting; it makes me think a lot differently about writing. Tomorrow, I have to go buy shoes for my new job, ugh. Oh well, they'll pay for themselves, soon enough. Plus, I got my college graduation present from my grandparents today, it was quiiiite the awesome surprise.

**Thanks **to: MissTeak, and Solar Kitty (the latter of whom has to put up with me daily, and would probably go crazy from my Bleach love if she didn't share it ^____^)

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**2. Complicated**

That first day, Gin had brought Rangiku to a tiny shack, and since then, they lived there together. Gin did not let anyone else join them, but Rangiku was content with that. She did not know that she would care to share her new companion with anyone else.

Food was a constant struggle. While for most of the people around then food was nothing more than a treat, a remembrance of a past world, for Rangiku and Gin, it was a necessity. Every day their body craved food, and a bite or two wouldn't suffice.

They had to steal to get by, but there were complications. Among so many people with dark hair and the same weathered faces, the pair stood out. Silver hair with a strange, foxy smile, and strawberry locks with wide blue eyes. They were memorable.

"Stop, thief!" The baker howled as soon as he saw Rangiku a little too near his table; already he looked for her companion. Gin dodged a quick kick, and they were off running through the crowd and awkward alleys.

They collapsed in the little shack, chests heaving. Gin clutched a small, round loaf of bread, scarcely bigger than his two hands. "S' no good, need ta get better at stealin'," Gin said, seeming to speak to himself.

"We're good! They just recognize us," Rangiku said. But she was a little afraid that Gin would tell her to leave. Then he would have at least had a full loaf of bread.

"Yer right," he said, and broke the loaf in two. He handed Rangiku the bigger piece; she tried to take the smaller instead, but he hid it behind his back with a deft hand. "Can't have ya collapsin' again."

"I'll be fine, what about you?" He was bigger than her, and stronger. He had to need more to eat than her.

"Don'tcha worry 'bout me. Me an' you, we'll figure somethin' out," he said.

He sounded so sure and confident Rangiku could not help but trust him.

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I love my reviewers, they make my day sparkle. And sometimes they provide ideas. Which is good. 100 ideas it a looot of ideas to come up with D=


	3. Making History

Well, I had quite the surprise this morning; this story was nominated by Sensei7 for Otaku Online Stop's February Best FanFiction Poll, which can be found at http:// z15 . invisionfree . com / Otaku_Online_Stop / index . php ? showtopic = 357 (remove the spaces for the link to work). Pretty cool, huh? First time I've had a story nominated for something! I guess that's about all I have to say this time. time to shower and get stuff together for my first day of training tomorrow. I'm soooo nervous.

**Thanks** to: MissTeak, Renji's Girll, Solar Kitty, and Masamii, and **special thanks** to Sensei7 for the nomination and Xapita for putting the nomination in the poll at Otaku Online.

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**3. Making History**

Rangiku sat on the floor, preparing a small meal. It was harvest time, and food was plentiful. She could not remember the last time she had eaten so well. Gin sat nearby, watching her. Rangiku did all the cooking since the first time Gin had cooked. In exchange, he cleaned up, which suited Rangiku just fine.

"Hey. When's your birthday, Rangiku?"

"I don't know," she said. "I never really counted days until I met you."

For once, Gin wasn't smiling, though Rangiku still couldn't see his eyes. "…Then the day you met me is your birthday. How about that, Rangiku?"

"I'd like that. I'd like that a lot, Gin." That meant, maybe, Gin was going to be around long enough that having a birthday would matter. Months from now, he'd be there, when it was time for her birthday. She grinned. "What about you?"

"Tenth of September," he said. "So you were like a late birthday present. But I didn't get ya a present. Are ya mad I didn't know it was yer birthday?"

Rangiku threw her arms around him. "I met you. That's the best present ever."

He laughed and hugged her back. "Thank ya." He got up and walked out the door.

"It's almost supper time!"

He waved, but didn't stop walking. Rangiku bit her lip and kept working on dinner. As much as she liked her new companion, sometimes he was a little odd.

When Rangiku laid out dinner, Gin walked in the door, carrying a bunch of wildflowers. "Happy late birthday, Rangiku!"

"Thank you! They're so pretty." She found a glass, a bit of water, and added the flowers; they had their own bouquet, and she thought it was prettier than the fanciest bouquet she had seen for sale in any shop.

Gin produced another package after dinner; dried persimmons. They split the batch and savored the sweet taste. Rangiku couldn't remember such a good day.

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Your reviews make me happy ^__^


	4. Unbreakable

This one is almost twice as long as the other drabbles, eek. Hopefully they won't grow too much longer. So long as they're fairly short, I'll definitely be able to continue doing one a day. I had to cheat a little though, and I put the theme I was supposed to use today later in the list; it just didn't work for me at all at this age for them. So I didn't get to think about the theme all day like I have for the others. Hopefully it's still all right.

Also, my first day of training was odd; my trainer was horrible, and I went to high school with her. She taught me almost nothing. So Friday my sister is going to train me. I hope it goes all right!

**Thanks** to: MissTeak, Solar Kitty (your comment will definitely be used, so long as I can, y'know, remember. Hurry up and start your Bleach fics that I inspired you to do with my overflow of inspiration!), and Sensei7

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**4. Unbreakable**

Sometimes, Gin was able to work odd jobs for a day or two, and he could earn a few coins. On these days, he would leave Rangiku alone in the shack, he never let her work. He also insisted that she stay home.

Rangiku tried to do what little he asked of her, especially when he looked at her so seriously, smile falling away somewhat. She would stay at home, cleaning and preparing for dinner as best she could, but she never knew if Gin would bring home a fish or some other treat. There was also only so much cleaning and watching the wind blow through the grass she could handle. She would switch to drawing in the dirt with a stick, but the wind or someone's footsteps or the rain would take her masterpieces away, almost always before she could should Gin.

So one day, Rangiku crept after Gin, pretending she was a sneaky thief trying to follow a rich man home so that she could take away a feast—a real feast with a million delicacies she did not know the names of , things she could hardly dream up. Or maybe she was after a pile of golden coins, and then Gin would never have to go off to work. She could wear kimonos like the rich lady she once saw riding in a procession, only Rangiku's would be lavender and shine with silver thread instead of gold.

Rangiku watched Gin talk to a farmer, then follow him towards a field; Rangiku crept after them, hiding behind a tree so Gin would not see her. She climbed up the tree and sat in a branch, hidden from view, and watched Gin pull up potato after potato until he filled a basket. Then he'd heft the basket, struggling under the weight for a moment, but he trudged to the farmer without spilling a single potato. When he started to work on a patch of carrots, Rangiku decided she had better climb down and slip back home before Gin left. He would be furious she had followed him, though she did not see what was so bad about working in a field; she was strong, she could do just as good a job as Gin.

She jumped down the last few feet of the tree.

"Oi, what do I have here? A thief?" Rangiku was hauled up into the air by a large, furry-looking man, younger than the farmer, but quite a bit older than Rangiku.

"N-no, sir! I was just watching, I promise."

"That's what they all say," he said. "Huh, you're a girl. A pretty one at that. Y'know, maybe I'll believe you if you help me out some."

"Tha's my sister, put 'er down," Gin commanded, out of breath from running through the field. "She ain't done nothin' wrong, just got lonely, I bet. Tol' her not ta come, but she ain't good at listenin', are ya Ran-chan?"

As soon as Rangiku's feet touched the ground, Gin pulled her behind him. "S-sorry, Gin."

"You okay, Ran-chan?"

She nodded, and the farmer joined them. "What's going on here?"

"My sister got lonely an' followed me," Gin said. "I don' want her goin' home alone. Why don't Ran-chan help me finish up, an' you can pay me jus' the same? Two fer the price o' one."

"All right," the farmer said, then looked at the other man. "Son, why don't you check on the orchard, make sure all the nets are secure."

Rangiku worked alongside Gin, amazed at how hard it was to pull up the vegetables, but she did not slow down, because Gin had worked all day, and still worked steadily. He was also quiet, and Rangiku could tell by the set of the jaw and how his eyebrows knit together he was not happy.

Finally, the farmer called them over. "All right, that's enough. You two did a good job." He handed Gin a few coins which disappeared almost as soon as they touched his hand. Then the farmer handed Gin and Rangiku several carrots and potatoes. "That's for such hard work, and for having to put up with such an adventurous sister."

"Hey!" But a look from Gin made Rangiku fall silent.

"Thank ya kindly." Gin led Rangiku away from the farm.

He did not speak again until they were inside the little shack. "Don't ya ever do that again. Ya could've gotten in a lotta trouble."

"Huh? But we got extra food 'cause I was there," Rangiku said.

"An' the farmer's son wasn' a good person. He wanted ta do bad things to ya, Ran-chan. Yer too pretty a girl ta jus' wander around."

After a moment, it fell into place for her. She had heard the stories. "…Oh."

"I don' want anything ta happen to ya, Ran-chan."

"But nothing bad will happen if you're there, Gin," she said.

"Tha's what I'm hoping," he said. "But don' do that again, please?"

"…Okay, I promise."

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Your reviews are the butter to my fly. (I dunno. I'm reeeally tired, reviews make for awesomeness though!)


	5. Obsession

Well, I thought I uploaded this before I showered, but all I did was write a blurb up here, and then I closed the window. . I'm sooo tired today. I need to start going to bed earlier, ugh. I have work tomorrow night, until after one am, so hopefully, I'll get a chance to do some writing before I leave, because I'm going to be exhausted by the time I get home; nine hours of training/waitressing, ack!

**Thanks to:** CrossroadsofLife, Sensei7, MissTeak, Renji's Girll, and Solar Kitty. I have such faithful reviewers, it makes me so happy!

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5. Obsession**

"Ugh!" Rangiku shoved her hair over her shoulder again. It kept blocking her view of the mixing bowl. When had her hair gotten so long? She kept meaning to cut it.

In fact, only a week ago, she had been about to cut it short. Why didn't she? Then she remembered.

Gin had ran over as she was about to start, "Ran-chan, I have somethin' ta show ya."

He had more or less dragged her outside, claiming to have seen a bunny. They had searched high and low around the shack, but Rangiku could not find so much as a trace of a bunny. She sighed. It was rare to see a rabbit in their part of the rukongai, so she had only seen one once before.

Strawberry blond locks blocked the bowl again. Enough was enough. Rangiku set the bowl down with a thump and picked up the little knife Gin had "found." He kept it sharp with a flat rock; she figured it was good enough for her hair. She held out a lock, and raised the knife.

"Let's go try ta catch a fish," Gin said. "I have a good feelin'."

"But I need to cut my hair; I can't see anything with it this long," Rangiku whined; it was hard to say no to Gin.

"But wouldn't a fish be good wi' dinner?" He asked. "'Sides, it'll be dark soon, ne?"

"You could go ahead, and then I could cut my hair."

"Nah, I always catch me more fish when yer around."

Rangiku was starting to wonder if Gin was trying to stop her from cutting her hair. But why would he do that? Then she remembered that this was not the second time she had tried to cut her hair. Rangiku counted back slowly. There was the time Gin had given her a chrysanthemum and told her it was her namesake. Another time he had tickled her until she cried. Now, it was the eighth time he had stopped her. Every single time Gin had distracted her or found a reason why she should not cut her hair just yet.

"Gin, why don't you want me to cut my hair?"

"Ya caught me, huh?" he said. "Ya got pretty hair, and now it's all long and soft, an' pettin' it's like pettin' a kitten."

Gin shut his mouth, Rangiku knew he had been about to go on even more. "You like it that much?"

He nodded.

"Really?"

"…Yeah."

Rangiku set the knife down and pounced on him, hugging him tightly. "I guess it's not so bad long."

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Reviews are totally awesome! Besides, you never know when one of your review ideas might get turned into a drabble! Solar Kitty will definitely recognize drabble 25!


	6. Eternity

Well, training wasn't too bad. I hope I learned enough stuff. Tomorrow, I have to study for my menu test though, ick. I even managed to convince a guy to buy our calendar, which the manager wanted us to do soooo badly that he gave me free cake. It was tasty ^___^

Soooo I actually wrote this last night after I uploaded drabble 5. I was impressed with myself, haha!

**Thanks** to: Sensei7, MissTeak, and Solar Kitty.

Shameless plugs: Apparently, I've been an inspiration! **Solar Kitty** started 100 Romantic Bleach Drabbles with various bleach couplings (since I stole the best couple ever!)--great, awesome read we should all read, and **MissTeak** wrote a RanxGin oneshot called **First Prayer**, which any RanxGin lover is going to love, I think.

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**6. Eternity**

Early on, Rangiku realized Gin had a bad habit. He wandered. The first time it happened, they were in the market, and Rangiku was buying some scraps of cloth so Gin could mend their clothes. Gin always let Rangiku do the bartering because the venders nearly always gave her a better deal; Rangiku was an adorable child when she was not covered in dirt.

Rangiku had just put the cloth in her pocket and looked at the building Gin had been leaning against; he always kept an eye on her when they were with other people. But he was not there; Rangiku turned in a slow circle, searching for the familiar silver hair. She saw a sea of black.

Cool hands covered her eyes. "Guess who."

"Gin!"

"Have me a surprise for ya." He let her free.

She spun around. "Really? What? What?"

Gin waved his hands dramatically, and a small barrette appeared in his hand. "Voila."

"Thank you!" Rangiku took it carefully, examining it. It was a simple piece of metal doubled on itself, but it had a small silver flower on the end. "It's beautiful."

"Now ya won't get yer hair in your face." He took the barrette back, and pinned her hair back carefully, his fingers were gentle and did not tug at her hair at all.

He wandered more and more. Sometimes, he brought back things with him, but most often, he just started walking. Usually, he started off by following someone; people seemed to fascinate Gin. He would simply disappear from view, and reappear a few minutes later.

However, Gin began to wander more and more, leaving Rangiku behind for hours at a time. Rangiku was too impatient to wait more than ten minutes if they were out somewhere; she would just go home without him, but that was a little lonely, especially when he was late for dinner.

One night, Rangiku was alone in the shack, and carefully made grilled fish, rice, and even made carrots, sweet and ripe. She had waited until the sun was low to start cooking, but even so, Gin was not home when dinner was hot.

So she waited, and dinner went from warm to lukewarm, from cool, to cold. Still Gin did not come, and when Rangiku's stomach kept growling, she ate her half, chewing each bite slowly, wishing her friend would walk in the door.

It was dark, and it was cold, sitting at the table, waiting across from a cold plate full of food. She moved to their bed and wrapped the thin blanket around her shoulders, sitting up, arms around her legs. She had never been alone in the shack that late before. The moon gave her just enough light to look around, but there were corners of shadow that seemed to eat away the light if she looked at them too long.

There were creaks and moans, chirps and Rangiku did not know what else. Each noise echoed in her head as she scrambled to figure out what it was, telling herself over and over again that it was not a terrifying monster. The one sound she did not hear was Gin's footsteps.

When the sun started to lighten the room, Rangiku's eyes slid shut, and she finally laid down, asleep.

She was awake a few hours later when the door opened. She scrambled up; finally she heard Gin's footsteps. She stared up at his silver, her eyes red and bleary, confirming he was really there. He had not left her.

"Look, I've got hot buns for breakfast," he said, and thrust something hot and light into her hands.

Rangiku took a bite automatically. "You didn't come home last night."

"Somethin' came up."

"Please don't do it again?"

"I'm sorry."

He had lost his smile; he meant it, but Rangiku also knew that if she pushed him for a straight answer, it was not going to be one she liked. Rangiku was too afraid to ask him to always come back.

Now, when Rangiku went out with Gin, it felt like an eternity went by when she turned to look back where he was supposed to be waiting. If Gin left for a day, he could also leave her behind forever.

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This one made me sad....

Reviews make my world go round!


	7. Gateway

I was planning on being productive today, but I woke up feeling bad (yet again) and ended up lazing around; I watched three movies . Still not feeling great, and I'm soooo nervous for tomorrow--it's my last day of "training" but I'll be doing everything while my trainer just watches. I hope I don't screw up.

**Thanks** to: C. Jordan, CrossroadsofLife, MissTeak, and sensei7

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**7. Gateway**

Gin sat watching Rangiku scrub wrinkled potatoes. They almost always had enough to eat now, but just barely. Food was a daily concern, something they spent so much time obtaining. Others did not have to waste their time with that. Then again, those same people would never have reiatsu. He was very proud to have that. But still, when he thought about how he could spend his days without the concern of food, he grew resentful.

He didn't want to have to worry about food.

When he stood in the market, and saw someone from a better section of Rukongai, he could not help but follow them. He wanted to know as much about these people as possible. The one time he saw a noble, he had followed as long as he could, keeping to the shadows. He wondered about their lives, the food they ate, how they spent their time.

One day, Gin saw a shinigami. He had heard about them in passing, but the real thing was something altogether. This was what reiatsu led to. They had full bellies and warm beds. Most of all, they could be more, and if they worked hard, they got something out of it, much more than a few sad potatoes.

While Gin could see that Rangiku was content with their life as it was—it had seemed hers was much worse before he found her—he knew how much better life could be. And he saw a way to get there, a way both of them could get there. He wanted to become a shinigami.

He would give it everything he had. He would do anything he could. Gin would not settle for mediocrity when he became a shinigami. That he might not get in never cross his mind, nor did the six years of schooling required. Gin would become a captain. He had made up his mind, and Gin was good at reaching his goals.

But he also had to make sure Rangiku would become a shinigami too. He simply could not leave her to this shack alone. Gin saw the strawberry blond as nothing short of extraordinary. He refused to believe that a girl like her could ever live a life of mediocrity.

It was just a matter of time now. They would have a better life. He would make sure of that.

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What'd you think? Love me my reviews.


	8. Death

Well, I didn't train today. They just put me staight onto the floors. It was a bit intimidating, plus I felt really sick at one point. I work tomorrow too, but my sister's the top waitress tomorrow, so I can bug her allllll I want. She's a good kid.

**Thanks** to: MissTeak, Sensei7, and Bankai Betty. You guys are all awesomesauce. Also, Happy Valentines Day, my lovely readers!

**Disclaimer**: I can't remember if I put one anywhere in here yet. I don't own Bleach, Kubo Tite does. No moneys in this for me, (though I do accept reviewer love!) just doing it for the fun of it all.

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**8. Death**

One day, Gin and Rangiku were walking down the street towards home; it was a hot, hazy day in summer when most tasks seemed nearly unbearable. Rangiku understood now why Gin had insisted they buy the ratty old fan in the middle of winter; now the prices were much higher. He was always thinking ahead, something she could not help but admire.

It was also the kind of day that made trouble. Hot, cranky people with too much time to do nothing but laze in the shade flew to shouting too easily. Gin had stayed by Rangiku's side all day.

They heard the shouts first. "Yeah, kick it again!"

"Serves it right for stealing my food."

"Yeah!" was repeated several times.

Gin walked in front of Rangiku, changing from companion to protector in a heartbeat. She wanted to tell him she could take care of herself, but he would just give her a look, and go on doing exactly as he had before.

Three boys about their age came into view. Piteous moans from some small animal filled the silence between the boys' shouts. Gin went up to them. Rangiku could see that his smile was more like a grisly grimace now. "Ya should stop tha' now."

One boy paused. "What? Or are you going to make me stop? Three to one?" He laughed, and kicked the animal again. Rangiku drew closer and cried out softly. It was a little orange tabby cat, though she could not be sure of the markings for blood.

Rangiku caught a glimpse of his eyes as he flew at the boy, tackling him to the ground. Immediately, a second boy tried to help the first, but the third went after her. The thing of it was, though, Gin had taught her how to fight, an offer of protection when he was not there. Rangiku may have been smaller than the boy, but she was smart, and deceptively strong. She used every trick she remembered, and then the boy was running, and the other two boys, looking worse for the wear, went running as well, stumbling, clutching at arms for noses.

Rangiku looked at Gin, panting. He had a few scratches on him, a few bruises, but Rangiku knew he was scary when he fought.

"Tha' was'n right," Gin said.

"Yeah."

The little cat made a low, pained cry.

Rangiku teared up. "Maybe we can help him."

Gin nodded slowly and carefully gathered the kitten into his arms, walking carefully to avoid jarring the cat. Rangiku gathered up the food they had dropped in the fight and followed him.

At home, Gin made a little nest out of a blanket so threadbare they no longer used it even as an extra cover. Rangiku heated water, and washed bandages. With gentle hands, she washed the wounds, and bound them when she could. The little cat made such piteous noises and never struggled against her. Rangiku knew that was not a good sign.

The pair sat vigil, dinner forgotten, beside him. They took turns stroking the cat's head, trying to comfort him without hurting him anymore, and they cleaned each other's marks of battle; even when they wanted to forget everything else except the little cat, they still knew the dangers of infections.

The little cat grew quieter as the hours passed. The occasional blink was the only movement the cat made, eventually even his cries fell silent.

Not long after dawn broke, Gin and Rangiku saw the change; how the soul left those pained eyes. Rangiku's breath shuddered, and tears filled her vision, but she closed the little cat's eyes with every bit of gentleness she could.

Gin was mute beside her, unmoving. Rangiku touched his arm lightly. He turned towards her abruptly, flinging himself into her arms. Sobs wracked his body, he shook all over. Rangiku wrapped her arms around him, crying, and surprised at his reaction too; always he had been the reserved one. He held onto Rangiku so tightly it nearly hurt, but he could not stop the tears.

Eventually, they buried the little cat, both quiet and subdued. They said no words, offering the wishes in their hearts, and marked the site with the prettiest rocks they could find.

Much later, Gin said, "Someday, that'll happen to us."

"Yeah," she said softly.

Now she understood his overwhelming reaction; he had been sad about the little cat, but Gin had realized his mortality, and to someday take the little cat's place terrified him. That night, they slept side-by-side, as close as they would in the depths of winter, seeking solace in each other's presence.

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Well, this wasn't the greatest one for Valentine's Day, but the theme fell when it did. I actually like this one pretty well. It was inspired by a comment in the anime about how Gin is afraid of death.

Reviews are my chocolate!


	9. Opportunities

Urgh. It deleted all my added stuff in a failed save. I nearly forgot to upload this actually, even though wrote a new drabble today (have written one or two every day since I started! I'm slowly going through and making notes for each drabble so I know more about the time line and don't freak out about a theme. Anyway, I'd better hurry this up and go to sleep; I'm up too late again, and I have work in the morning (again). But I'm off Wednesday! And Friday! yay!

**Thanks** to: Mihara-chan and MissTeak. MissTeak gave me v-day chocolates, yay! Also, I think my fanfiction account kind of screwed up my reply to your review question, so I'll just repeat it here. The comment was in a soul society arc episode, during a time Gin was talking to Kuchiki, I think.

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**9. Opportunities**

"Ah, Ran-chan?" Gin said, standing in front of a door. "What're ya doin?"

"Going in the store?"

"Tha's the wrong door."

"It is?" Then Rangiku noticed the strange symbols on the door, and wondered if she had been caught. Thee was one thing that Gin could do that seemed like magic to Rangiku. He could read. The strange symbols made words to him, and she did not understand it at all. She was too proud to ask him to teach her.

Gin frowned. "Do ya know what the sign says?"

"Of course."

"What's it say?"

Rangiku knew Gin was definitely onto her then, but she was afraid he would make fun of her. He was always so much smarter than she was. She hazarded a guess, "Exit only."

"No, no it don't. It's 'employees only'," Gin said. When he spoke again, his voice was subdued. "Ya can't read, can ya? Why didn' ya tell me?"

Rangiku shrugged, and stared at the ground.

"Ran-chan, you buy the thread, and head home. I have somethin' I gotta do," Gin said and walked off waving, "Bye-bye."

She chewed on her lip, but did as he told her.

Later, Gin returned. "Look what I got ya." He held out a parcel wrapped in a small piece of cloth.

Hesitantly, she took it from him, unwrapping the package. It was a book, her face fell, and she stared at it mutely.

"I'm gonna teach ya to read," he said.

"Oh."

"First, I gotta teach ya the symbols. We'll start with hiragana, then katakana," he said. "We'll worry about kanji later. When ya can read the book ta me, I'll get ya a present."

"Really?"

"Yup," he said. "Now c'mon outside wi' me."

Rangiku followed after him, and together, they began tracing letter after letter in the dirt. She practiced making the sound the symbol represented, and Gin was patient and kind no matter how many times she asked after the letter.

It was slow progress learning all the symbols, and sometimes, Rangiku felt like it was all so jumbled together that she could never get it right. But eventually, individual letters made sense to her. Then Gin began teaching her to read words. That Rangiku took to easily, though sentences were harder; she had to sort everything out.

A month later, Rangiku read the book aloud to Gin. She could tell it was meant for an early reader, but she felt so proud when she finished it. The world around her made a little more sense.

"So, whatcha want fer your present?"

"A harder book, I want to read as good as you!"

Gin laughed. "Tha's my girl."

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I wasn't sure about this one, but I was wondering how Rukia learned to read since she was a lil' baby in the rukongai and never seemed to have formal schooling, so it sort of stemmed from that. Let me know what you think!

Reviews are my candy! Don't forget, if you have drabble ideas, tellllll me, there's a GOOD chance it'll become a drabble!


	10. Memory

You know, it's terrible how much more forgetful I am about uploading the drabbles as opposed to writing them. Every day writing is happening, and yet I only just barely remember to submit a drabble a day. I also realized that in a few months, I'll be away for two weeks. I MAY have someone post some up while I'm gone, and I MIGHT have net access, it's just so iffy. But that's not until April (and hopefully I'll have all those chapters pre-written, haha!)

**Thanks** to: Renji's Girll, Solar Kitty, and MissTeak. All three of you have reviewed every chapter, it's such a nice, lovely feeling ^______^

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****10. Memory**

Gin picked up a piece of unruly thread that was unraveling a bit at both its ends. He examined the thread ends, then his needle. A moment later, the needle was threaded. Gin was pleased to note he did it on his first try, as always.

Now came the tricky part. He folded the fabric in precise little edges, and began sewing together the two halves of fabric. It was a long, slow process, but it was an important mend, more important than patching his yukata or whatever else Rangiku gave him to mend. While he knew he was best at threading the needle, he was still far better than Rangiku when it came to sewing.

She was a spontaneous, impatient girl, so her stitches were wide and fast, jabbing and crumbling the fabric together. She was as likely to make the problem worse as better. Gin's hands were quick and patient. Sometimes, he wondered if they could be any more different, but then he would remember the differences between nobles and those from the depths of rukongai. When he remembered those differences, suddenly he and Rangiku seemed much the same again.

Eventually, the patch was done and stuffing had been pushed back into a tiny silver fox Rangiku had made him for his last birthday. It was much different from the usual things she sewed. Tiny, even stitches held it together, and careful embroidery made its grinning face.

Gin laid on his back, setting the little toy on his chest, remembering.

"_Hey Gin? Have you ever had a toy?"__Rangiku asked._

"_The world's my toy, and everything in it."_

"_But what about a regular toy?"_

"_Nah."_

He really did see the world as his toy; however, something in him delighted at getting a toy. It was something all his to play with, and love. Not only was it something rare and precious in this part of the rukongai, but it was from Rangiku. He still did not know how long it had taken her to make the little fox, especially without him finding out about it.

He had taken to carrying it always in his pocket, his own little friend who travelled with him wherever he might go. And it always reminded him of Rangiku, his best friend, and the only one he trusted.

But this meant more wear and tear on the stuffed animal than if Gin had simply set it on his bed. The little fox was still young, but already, it had several patches. Every time he saw a bit of stuffing poke out, it made him terribly sad. He wanted to be able to keep his Rangiku's present forever, to be able to cherish that little toy forever.

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Don't forget to tell me what you thought in a review! I will give out pie to all reviewers!


	11. Dead Wrong

The world feels off today, dunno why. Oh well.

**Thanks** to: MissTeak and Puddlejumpin *gives out slices of pie to each of them; choice of any fruit, nut, custard, mouse, etc. pie you want*

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11. Dead Wrong

Gin saw them laying out in neat rows in the sun. They were wrinkled and dark. Persimmons, he was sure.

His mouth watered, and he glanced around. Rangiku was not in sight. Which meant he could sneak one. He could always blame a wild animal if she asked.

Gin knew he should wait, but he could not help but pick one up. It was his favorite thing to eat, after all.

He bit into it, smiling in anticipation.

A second later, he spat it out, trying to get the taste out of his mouth. It was nothing like the sweet, succulent taste of his beloved persimmons. What on earth did Rangiku do to them?

Rangiku walked outside of the house yet. "Hey, don't eat that yet!"

Gin looked at the evidence in his hand. "Tha's horrible. What'd the poor persimmon ever do ta ya?"

She stared at him a long moment before she started laughing. "It's a dried sweet potato."

"Oh," he said. He had a feeling he should have known that. "Well, I still don't like it."

"You really thought it was a dried persimmon?"

Now that he looked more closely at it, it was obvious it wasn't his beloved dried persimmon. "Guess so." _Never again_, he vowed to himself, intent on never tasting another dried sweet potato again.

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In the "Official Bleach Bootleg" Rangiku's and Gin's favorite food is the persimmon, and Gin's least favorite is dried sweet potatos.... because he mistook it for his favorite food.

Hit the review button, it makes me smile.


	12. Running Away

Umm... I dunno. Worked too long, I guess. Sleepy, sleepy. Love you all!

**Thanks** to: Renji's Girll and Solar Kitty

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**12. Running Away**

Food was a perpetual want for them, but there was only so much food two children could earn with work and catching fish and such. They had to steal.

Rangiku, with her fiery blonde locks, always went up to the vender. "Hi."

The vender stared at her, saying nothing.

"These look like really nice onions."

"They aren't for poor children," he said. "No hand-outs. Get away with you!"

Rangiku frowned and said, "Well fine. Tough luck to you!"

She grabbed a small onion. The vender ran around to her, and she danced back into the crowd. The vender followed, chasing after her, shouting "Thief!" and cursing all the while. Rangiku flew down narrow alleys and whirled around sharp corners. She dove through narrow openings and wriggled under fences. When she felt safe again, Rangiku made her way back towards the shack.

She only had an onion, but the moment the vender moved away to chase her, Gin would have the real bounty. He was much better at sneaking around than she was, despite his unusual hair.

Rangiku stuck to routes she had explored with Gin beforehand as much as possible. It was safer that way; there was less chance of being caught or getting into trouble as she ran.

A man blocked her way. "Where're you going, pretty girl?" He grabbed Rangiku's arm.

He stank of a bar, and he pressed his rancid face close to hers. Rangiku went still for half a second. Then she threw the onion at him as hard as she could. It startled him enough to loosen his grip.

She ran, "Gin! Gin!" She prayed he was nearby when she heard the footsteps behind her gaining ground fast.

Gin slid past her, and she heard the impact or a body hitting another body. She kept running. Soon, she found the food Gin had stolen; she scooped it up, barely loosing stride. There were times she would help Gin, but she knew that most of the time, it was better just to run.

At home, she started to prepare dinner, but she also got out the bandages and disinfectants.

Gin returned soon after she was done preparing. There were slashes of blood across yukata, and splatters across his face. Rangiku tugged him towards her impromptu first aid station quickly, eyes wide.

"Mos' of it ain't mine," he said, waving his hands.

Rangiku wiped away the blood with a rag; he was right. He had a slash on his arm, a few bruises, and a few scratches on his face. His hands looked the worst. Ragged knuckles looked bloody and raw. She did not ask questions, she just cleaned him up and covered wounds where she could.

"I'm glad you're okay," she said.

"Same ta you." He wrapped his arms around her. They held each other tight, each a little afraid of what could have happened.

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Love to all *yawns* Love me my reviews!


	13. Judgment

I can't get in a writing mood today. I've barely started my drabble for today *sigh* and I have to work in the morning, ugh. Guess I'd better get it together, huh?

I really don't know about this one. It took an odd turn, I think?

**Thanks** to: MissTeak and sierraqueen, hugs to you both!

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**13. Judgment**

Sometimes, Gin wondered about the day he saved Rangiku. It haunted him on some late nights. Would he have saved her if she had not felt hunger? He was not sure. If she had been ordinary, she would not have needed saving that day. Even given her reiatsu, Gin was not sure why he had shared the persimmons with her, or led her back to his tiny shack, more of a lean-to than anything else. They kept it only because it had been forgotten by others as too decrepit to live in. Why had he shared what little he had stored away and carved out a different life for her?

Mostly, he worried because he wanted to keep her close forever. Their differences scared him, and it scared him that he had changed so many parts of his life to allow her in.

To the rich, sharing a meal was a simple matter. To one like him, it was a heavy decision. Yet he had seen her, and a moment later, the persimmon was pressed to her lips.

He wondered how "me and them" became "us and them," and why Rangiku's smile was so important. His smile meant nothing, but hers lit up a room and dazzled the world. Still, no one spoke to him the way Rangiku did.

Gin looked down on most people; they were stupid, lacked reiatsu, or did not try hard enough. He wanted to be so much more most days.

Other days, when he saw Rangiku's smile, heard her happy laughter, sometimes it seemed like it was all enough.

Today, though, Gin was ready to trade away his dreams, his carefully thought out goals to make Rangiku stop coughing. A single pained, ragged breath interrupted the coughing every so often. The girl could scarcely breathe for coughing the wracked her body.

Gin held her up, leaning against a wall. It was even worse if she laid down, and this way, at least, she was a little warmer. But he was scared, and he remembered he was just a boy, and he did not know what to do to help her.

He held her close when she finally slept, her breaths shallow and raspy. "Be okay, Ran-chan," he whispered. "Yer a survivor, doncha forget it."

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Reviews make for hugs and pie!


	14. Seeking Solace

This one is a bit short, which is kind of funny because the one I wrote today (18) is also a bit short. I've gotten a bit obsessed with finishing "Zoo Tycoon 2". When I was a kid, I wasn't allowed to have games like that, so now I occasionally get really into them, as time-consuming and time-wasting as they are . Thankfully I only have 6-7 scenarios left (about 13 are done, woo!) Do you guys ever get obsessed over silly stuff like this? I can't wait til I'm done so I can focus more on writing and jewelry and sleeping again. I have a bad habit of watching the money counter. Ugh. I must learn to say no!

**Thanks** to: MissTeak, she gets an entire pie for herself. Where did all my regulars go? D=

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14. Seeking Solace

Sometimes, late at night when he could not sleep, Gin wondered if ghosts were real or not. He did not really believe in them, but that late, when the moon was dim and the wind ghosted through trees, he wondered a little.

He fell asleep to those whispers turning round in his head. Soon, he saw golden-green cat eyes losing their soul, dimming to that unfocused death gaze. He saw it over and over again, hearing the piteous cries echoing through it all.

It was his nightmare.

He woke screaming, crying, hating how well he knew it.

All at once, Rangiku's arms were around him, making silly, nonsense noises of comfort. She stroked his back, his hair, as he found reality again, until he could see more than haunted cat eyes.

The thing that scared him the most about the eyes was not the cat's death, but he knew that if he looked into those eyes too long in his dream, he would see his own death. That chilled him more than anything he could imagine.

And on all of those nights, Rangiku was there to wash it all away. She brought life back into him, and held the eyes at bay. Those nights, he was so very glad she was there with him, to hold on to some of this secrets for him. Gin knew she would never betray them; she was the only person he could trust with his nightmare.

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I am insanely tired, sleep now. Work tomorrow, ugh. I think I don't get a day off til Sunday. Ew. Ewwww.

Reviews are my sunshine.


	15. Excuses

You know, I wrote two drabbles today, you'd think I would remember to post them earlier, right? At least I've still been remembering . Now I need to go sleep. Got my sister to work for me tonight, which was nice, since I work the next six days . Most of the time, I work with her too, which is always... weird.

**Thanks** to: crossroadsoflife, MissTeak, and Mokie

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15. Excuses

Today was the day the entrance exams to the shinigami academy took place. Gin had known exactly when they were for months.

"Gin, let's look for berries today. It's the right time for them, right? We could try that big patch near the trees we went to last year—it was so yummy," Rangiku said.

"All right," Gin said. He followed her out; after all, taking the entrance exam would not do him any good if he and Rangiku had nothing to eat.

He began to pick the berries. Besides, he was still just a kid, and he figured that meant he had to enjoy his childhood, not study it away.

Rangiku popped a berry straight from the vine into her mouth. "Mmm, so yummy! I bet the nobles never get to have a berry this fresh and good."

His days would be spent pouring over books and training; there would be no time for days like this. No time for berry picking, or laying in the grass picking out cloud shapes by Rangiku.

There was all the time in the world for him to become a shinigami. It was ridiculous to worry so much about the academy. He certainly did not have to rush right into it.

Gin held out a big, fat, sweet berry to Rangiku. She burst the juices in her mouth, closing her eyes in delight. "You always find the best ones."

He would not be able to see Rangiku so happy eating berries either.

Gin knew he was making excuses. He knew how flimsy they were, but he made excuse after excuse so he did not think about the real reason he was not at the entrance exam today. He would not go without Rangiku; he could not leave her behind to become a shinigami. However, he did not know if she would even want to take the entrance exams, let alone become a shinigami. If she did not want to, he did not think he would follow that path either.

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I have up through drabble 40 written. Any ideas for things that might happen while they're in the shinigami academy? After they graduate? After Gin leaves? I wish I knew Kubo Tite's plans for Gin!


	16. Vengeance

Kind of a companion piece to 15--Excuses.

**Thanks** to: MissTeak and sensei7

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**16. Vengeance**

There was a lot of cheering and some booing near the market square, so Gin and Rangiku pressed through the crowd, eager to satisfy their curiosity. A young man was hugging an older woman, laughing as he said his good-byes.

"What's going on?" Rangiku demanded of the crowd.

"The boy got into the shinigami academy," someone said.

"They had entrance exams?" Rangiku said.

"Six week ago Monday," Gin said.

"How do you know that?" Rangiku stared at him, Gin could see the gears in her mind whirring. A lie just was not going to cut it this time.

"I thought about taking them."

"Why didn't you?"

"Didn't feel like it."

Rangiku watched the boy for a minute. "You know, Gin, that guy, you fought him once," she said. "You won. You're a lot stronger and smarter than he is."

"So?"

"You didn't try out 'cause of me, didn't you?" Rangiku said soft enough Gin had to strain to hear her.

"Tha' ain't true. Had me a lotta reasons," he said.

"But you really wanted to go," she said. "I can tell. You're almost green looking at him."

"S'not a big deal."

Rangiku kicked him. "Yes it is! I am so angry at you right now," she said. "You should've told me, and then you should have gone."

"Couldn't leave ya behind."

"Who says you'd leave me behind?" Rangiku said and kicked him again. "I'd go too."

"Stop kicking me," he said, but he felt better than he had in days. Things would end up all right.

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How was it?


	17. Love

Nothing raunchy as they're just kids, despite the "love" theme. I try to keep the themes in the order I originally found them in; makes it more interesting for me (though I have moved a couple around.)

**Thanks** to: Mihara-chan, Renji's Girll, and Solar Kitty

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**17. Love**

"Hey, let's have dinner early," Gin said.

"Why?"

"Just 'cause."

Rangiku nodded, but she decided Gin was probably up to something. Then again, she had to wonder if Gin was ever not up to something. She started making dinner, and grew more suspicious. Gin was flipping through a book, but he was not really reading it. Usually he devoured pages intently.

The table was set early, without Rangiku having to remind her companion once. He even helped her bring the food to their table. They ate quickly, Rangiku feeling the tension surrounding Gin, pushing her to hurry.

"Let's go get persimmons for dessert," Gin said.

"It's kind of late for persimmons."

"Nah, let's go," he said. "Come on."

Rangiku took her time putting her scarf on and following him to the door, where he stood, a blanket draped over his shoulders. Before she could ask about his new coat, he grabbed her hand and hurried her down towards the market. He did not slow at the stands there, saying their persimmons were not any good. She decided Gin was in one of his moods where nothing would suit him and just followed along. Trying to persuade him otherwise would not do any good at all.

After over an hour of speedy walking, Gin stopped at a stand and bought them several dried persimmons and tucked them into his robe and pulled Rangiku off again.

"Why don't we just stop and eat? Rangiku whined.

"Cause we gotta eat them at the right place."

"What's that supposed to mean?"

"C'mon, up here," Gin said, pointing at a ladder.

"No way, people will see, we'll get yelled at."

"No we won'. Now up you go."

Rangiku went up warily with her friend just behind her. She froze when she could see over the roof; there were almost ten people up there. "Gin, there's people up here, we have to go!"

"I know, it's fine. Hurry up."

He sounded so confident and assured that Rangiku scooted the rest of the way onto the roof. Gin hopped up beside her a moment later and led her towards the front of the roof and sat, pulling her down beside him. He handed her half of the persimmons.

"What's this all about?"

"Just wait."

Rangiku sighed and leaned against Gin's shoulder, it was cold out. Her friend spread the blanket over their laps.

She took a bite of persimmon, and then gasped. An explosion rocketed through the air and the sky erupted in a sparkling rainbow of colors. She sat, mesmerized by the sight. "This is amazing."

"Winter fireworks," Gin said and grinned.

"You could've just told me, you know."

"Nah, that wouldn't be half as fun."

"Why not?"

"I wouldn't get ta see the surprise when ya saw 'em," he said. "So, do ya like 'em?"

"I love them," she said and hugged him tightly.

Gin wrapped his arms around her, and they watched the wondrous show, warding off the cold huddled together. Rangiku decided winter fireworks should always be seen with people she cared about then, staring in awe as stars and hearts and flowers burst into the night, filling it with a hundred colors.

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I saw a part of a bleach thing somewhere where Rangiku was watching fireworks with Hitsugaya, Momo, Aizen, and a couple others, and that's how I ended up with the idea.

What'd you think?


	18. Tears

Glad I wrote some of these ahead of time. Fell down a bunch of icy steps twice, arm hurts a lot, so no writing tonight .

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**18. Tears**

He was not sure what they were arguing about. Gin did not even know what had started the arguing. All he knew was that he lost his temper in a bad way, he had never lashed out at anyone like that before. He preferred to be calm and cool, making everyone else jump through his hoops. But he could not do that with Rangiku. She knew him. She was someone special, different from all the rest.

Which should have meant a different outcome for her than everyone else. Whatever he had said, it did not matter. She had looked at him such conflicted, confused eyes. The blue stood out so sharply with hurt. Then her eyes unfocused beneath a hazy film.

It started with a single, slow tear dribbling down her left cheek. Then a whole slew of them erupted in a downpour. At the first choking sob, she ran.

By the time it all caught up with Gin, he had no idea where she was. He headed back to their shack.

Rangiku was not there.

He sat in the middle of the room and wrapped his arms around his knees. He wondered if Rangiku would leave him, for a moment.

He felt like crying too.

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Hope ya enjoyed.


	19. My Inspiration

My shortest one yet I think . But the one I typed up today might be my longest, silly huh? I'm feeling much better now (though my muscles are groaning a bit.) Thank you for concern! Off to bed, work in the morning.

**Thanks **to: Sensei7, Bankai Betty, and Solar Kitty. You guys make me happy and fluffy-feeling (or I'm just really sleep-deprived. Fluffy, really?)

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**19. My Inspiration**

Rangiku knew she would not be alive if Gin had not found her that day and fed her dried persimmons. That meant her life was a gift, and so was each day.

She stared up at the clouds. Almost immediately, she saw a fox, and then a cat. She was not sure which animal she liked better. Probably foxes, they reminded her of Gin. She was not sure where he was just then, but she knew he would be back.

Sunshine broke through the clouds and hit her face; she close her eyes as the warmth spread over her. Days like this were rare and wonderful to her.

It was because of Gin that she could enjoy them.

Rangiku knew that because he saved her that she could not simply pass through life.

She would live a beautiful life. Rangiku would make sure of that; after all, her life was a gift.

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Love ya!


	20. Never Again

This one's kind of silly and a little pointless? Right this second, I'm in a pretty good mood, I just found out I -will- be getting a promotion to bartender this week. Which is good, because they make more money ^___^ Hopefully I do all right. I mean, I've only been a waitress there two weeks, and that's the entire extent of all my waitressing experience too. Guess I'm fresh meat.

**Thanks** to: Lynne Harrow

**Dedication** to: Solar Kitty, because it's her birthday. Wish today's drabble was wonderful fluff for it =(

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**20. Never Again**

As the date to the shinigami academy entrance exam drew near once more, Gin and Rangiku began a sort of game that made them look forward to life at the academy more and more.

"When we start a' the academy, never again will I ever have ta eat a frog," Gin said.

"Never again will I have to go two weeks without a bath," Rangiku said.

"Never again will I use a threadbare, patched blanket for a coat."

They would start up out of the blue, and end up grinning like fools by the end. The days no longer blended into one another; each was closer to that day. Rangiku had never felt so much hope and excitement in her life.

"Never again will we have to steal food," Rangiku said.

"Never again will it snow _inside_."

"Never again will we have to stuff the cracks up with rags to keep the drafts out.

They talked about it lightheartedly, even when the truth of it hurt a little. It would be absolutely life changing for them. Almost nothing would be the same.

"Never again will we be looked down upon for having reiatsu," Gin said.

"Never again will we go hungry."

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Weird, ne? Anyone have any drabble ideas? Also, reviews are good. I like attention =D


	21. Failure

Bad mood. Not much to say. Enjoy.

**Thanks **to: Sonozaki-sama and CrossroadsofLife

**Dedication** to: Solar Kitty, as it is still her birthday, and she helps inspire me n' stuff. Thanks, birthday girl.

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**21. Failure**

Rangiku knew that Gin would be accepted into the academy. He was brilliant. Herself, on the other hand, was not. Even as she made dreams and talked about how wonderful it would be to go to the academy, Rangiku worried.

There was a good chance she would not pass the entrance exams. She knew Gin would go when he passed, not even her failure would stop him. It terrified her.

If that happened, she would be left behind. She hated being alone, now more than ever. Since Gin had entered her life, everything had changed, for the better. If he left, she was afraid it would all fall apart. Gin had become the center of her world.

So when Gin was not home, Rangiku took to studying. She loathed it, but she wanted to be sure she could go with him. She always put Gin's books back exactly as she found them. Rangiku knew he would say something to tease her about it. Nor did she want him to know how afraid she was.

Every time he disappeared she was still a little afraid he would not come back. The shinigami academy would take up his time, make it so much easier to forget all about her if she was not there too.

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Reviews are nice


	22. Rebirth

Tired today, dunno why. Blah.

**Thanks** to: MissTeak, Sensei7, coolbeanz, and SwirlzSmile, you guys rock

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**22. Rebirth**

It was the day Rangiku had been dreading for weeks. It had been her second most dreaded day until she had taken the entrance exams, then it took first place. Today, the exam results were listed, and the list of students accepted to the shinigami academy would also be posted.

Gin was humming.

Normally, Rangiku loved it when he sang. Today, it grated on her nerves. He was calm, happy, reassured. It somehow made her more worried than ever. She had not even finished some of the sections on the exam, but that was something Rangiku was not able to bring herself to tell Gin. Not when he was debating whether or not he got two questions wrong on the entire test. The rest he was sure he had gotten right.

Gin assumed Rangiku did at least nearly as well.

She felt like throwing up.

"Here, put on yer good kimono," he said. By good kimono, it simply meant relatively new, long enough, and freshly stolen.

Putting the kimono on became an event for her; she took her time and adjusted the sleeves just so and tied the obi half a dozen times before she was satisfied.

Or rather, before Gin lost all patience. By the third time she tied her obi, he was telling her to hurry up. As it was, he wanted to be there an hour before the results were posted; he wanted to see them first, not have to fight through a crowd, waiting, fighting to see.

"Ya know what? It's fine. We're going, now," Gin said as she moved to untie her sixth try. "Ya look pretty, real pretty. Like a girl."

"I always look like a pretty girl."

"Well, even better than normal then, how's tha?" He said and tugged her towards the door.

Rangiku dragged her feet and let herself become distracted by carts of anything. She had never known how interesting cauliflower could be before. Then Gin would realize she was not by his side and hurry back to get her. For once, she wished he would leave her behind, as he so often did. The problem was, she never knew where he was going when he did that. This time she did, and he wanted her to go too.

"Yer afraid to see," Gin said a few minutes after he pulled her away from wrinkled potatoes.

"Of course not!"

"Yer a bad liar."

"What if I don't get in?"

"'Course you'll get in."

Rangiku wondered where he got that easy assurance, how he found that certainty. "You'll get in. I might not. What then?"

"We'll figure it out," he said, leading her forward. "It'll be fine. Promise."

"Not if you're in the academy and I'm stuck here alone."

"Now yer whining."

That shut her up for the rest of the walk, but Gin wrapped his hand around hers. It was warm and comforting, but she wondered if that same grip was also meant to keep her from running, not that she could out run Gin; he was too tricky.

The walk seemed to be over in a heartbeat, but when pieces of paper were nailed up on a wooden wall, Rangiku realized Gin's hand had been nearly all good intentions. He had made the walk longer so she would not have to wait, worrying and staring at that board for long.

When Gin pulled her to the board, Rangiku scanned one list while Gin scanned the other. Immediately, Gin let out a whoop. She made it to the bottom of the list and nearly threw up. There was no mention of a Matsumoto Rangiku, even on the wait list.

"Ya didn't look at the advanced class list, Ran-chan," Gin said.

"Why would I?" She knew she sounded petulant, but she could hardly stand being there that moment.

"'Cause tha's the class you're in."

Now she heard the playful, excited notes that betrayed his serious tone. "…What?"

"See?" He pointed a long, slim finger at her name on the advanced class list. "Same as me."

Rangiku started crying and threw her arms around Gin; she did not care that they were surrounded by people, even nobles.

"Ahh, Ran-chan, ya shouldn' cry," he said, patting her back. "Should be smilin' all happy like."

"I am," she said. "Laughing and crying. I can't believe it."

"I can," he said. "Gonna be a whole new life for us now, just like we dreamed."

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Enjoy?


	23. Patience

So is having some weird issues and won't let me upload, so I'm trying to see if I can't copy and paste over a document already stored on . We'll see, wish me luck! If this doesn't work, I'm just heading to bed, have work in the morning and it's already late .

**Thanks** to: MissTeak, crazyfreakazoid, and Lynne Harrow

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**23. Patience**

Rangiku and Gin went into the dining hall together the first night. They had heard it was going to be a feast, and Rangiku was so excited she was practically dancing. She could scarcely imagine such a thing. The pair took a seat along a long bench with the other new first years.

An old man stood, his bald head a sharp contrast with his long mustache and braided beard. Rangiku nearly giggled in the silence that came just before he spoke; his eyebrows were the strangest ones she had ever seen, hanging down his face like floppy puppy ears.

"I am the Head Captain of the gotei 13 Yamaoto Genryuusai Shigenkuni and founder of the Central Spiritual Arts Academy. I welcome you all to the new year. Do enjoy the feast, and do your best to become strong shinigami," the old man said, then took a seat.

The end of the speech seemed to signal a slew of servants—Rangiku wondered if they were from the noble families—who brought out covered platter after covered platter.

The platters were uncovered, and Rangiku gasped. She and Gin could have eaten one platter for a week between them, and there were eight platters near her. A glance at her friend told her that he was in as much awe as she was; Rangiku could see his eyes, just barely. It was his version of gaping.

Rangiku was about to fill her plate in a mad rush, but she waited a moment; she did not want to be the first to dig in. Instead, a noble delicately took a few small servings. Rangiku followed suit, biting her lip. She did not want the nobles to look down on her for bad table manners. As she added to her plate, she noticed Gin also followed the noble's direction.

She ate more than she had ever eaten before, until her stomach felt taut. Then dessert came, and she ate even more, until she could not force another bite down. Gin matched her, three bites for her every one.

Eventually, the students and teachers began to drift out of the room, but Rangiku stayed. Her stomach did not feel right, a sort of sloshy acid mixed with a hard, heavy block weighing her down.

"Ya ate too much, didn' ya?" Gin said, sitting on the edge of the table; few people were left by then.

Rangiku nodded a bit. She kept swallowing.

"Ya'll feel better if ya lay down, let's go back ta yer room."

"But you're not allowed in the girl's dorms…" she said and she stood. She wanted Gin there though, she felt terrible, and he always took care of her.

"I'll sneak in. Don' worry, jus' give me a few minutes," Gin said at the door to her dorm.

There was a flight of stairs, and by the time Rangiku made it up, she was sweating in strange places, she felt cold and hot at the same time. She swallowed hard several times, as she had done all through the short walk to her dorm.

It didn't help. Seconds later, she was reliving her feast with the toilet.

When she was done, Gin handed her a glass of water and stroked her back. "Feelin' any better?"

"Not really…"

"Ah, I'm sorry," he said. "I shoulda warned ya. Gonna be a long night."

"Warned me?"

"Not ta eat so much, specially since we're not used ta it."

"How come you're fine?"

"Guess I can jus' eat more 'an you."

There was such a horrible taste in her mouth. It made her sick again. Gin pulled her hair and out of the way.

When Rangiku was done, Gin laid her head on his lap and stroked her hair. Gin always took care of her. He was always so good to her when she was sick; it did not seem to matter how much time Gin had to spend waiting on her to get better again. Even now, when it was her own fault, even as she began to feel better, lying on the bathroom floor, Gin continued watching over her.

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How was it? Originally, Gin was the one who was going to be sick, but eh. Solar Kitty and I were talking and we always think off Gin as a bottomless stomach with a will of steel who'd never let himself get sick from eating too much, haha.


	24. Breaking Away

I'm back on my writing kick, woo! I wrote two drabbles yesterday and two today as well. Now I just have to keep it up, hehe! There's a good chance I'll have 'net access at least some of the time during my Europe trip, in which case I'll be able to put up some drabbles then. I am thinking about having someone post them for me, but I dunno, it feels kind of weird, y'know? I'm a little protective of my writing, I suppose.

**Thanks** to: sensei7

**Contest: **So, wow, 78 reviews. Not too many more til 100, I'm excited!! So, since this is 100 drabbles, when I get 100 reviews, I'll do a RanxGin (or GinxRan, same thing, right?) one-shot for the 100th reviewer.

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24. Breaking Away

Rangiku stared up at the ceiling. She could not sleep listening to the sounds of her roommate breathing. It was too different from Gin's; he did not snore, and he slept without tossing and turning, with soft, deep breaths. The first night, she was too sick to notice, the second and third she was so enraptured by the luxury her roommate thought was below par that she slept well. Such soft, wonderful blankets and a warm room shut tight from drafts still awed her. But now, it was hard to sleep without her friend nearby. Now, everything seemed so strange and lonely.

In the morning, she had hoped to eat with Gin, but the dorms each had their own cafeteria, so Rangiku was once again stuck with the girls. She knew it was not a great start to life at the academy, but she sat alone, away from the rest of the girls. That morning, she just could not stomach the thought of breaking the morning fast with anyone other than Gin. She hardly ate two bites before she left for her first class.

Gin came up to her in the few minutes before they went inside the classroom. He handed her half an onigiri, and took a bite of the other half. Rangiku quickly followed suit, glad for a moment of comfort.

But all too quickly, class began, and seats were assigned. From her seat, Rangiku could not even see Gin without the teacher noticing.

It made it hard for Rangiku to pay attention, class after class, day after day, when she saw Gin only for moments. She looked forward to dinner; it got her through the day, because then she could sit with her friend for a little while.

A week later, Gin was late for supper. Rangiku could hardly stay in her seat; she kept turning to look towards the door and jabbing at her food with a chopstick. Where was he? He could not possibly have wandered off here as he so often did when they were in the rukongai.

"Hey," he said, scaring her out of a chopstick jab. "Ya haven't eaten any o' yer dinner yet."

"Wasn't hungry," Rangiku said, though now her appetite was back. She ate a bite.

Gin sat down. "Guess you're wondering where I've been."

"Yeah."

"Been talkin' wi' a bunch of teachers," Gin said and began eating. "It's kind of good news and bad news, I guess."

"What do you mean?"

"Guess I've been doin' real well," Gin said. "So well they say I shouldn' be in first year. Or in second year. So they're tossin' me in third."

Rangiku stared at her friend. "Third year?"

"They say I migh' graduate in two or three years," Gin said.

"That's great!" Rangiku put every scrap of excitement and good feeling she could muster before they all went away.

"Sorta," Gin said. "Means I'm gonna be aroun' even less. Won' even be here for dinner."

"I know," Rangiku said. She focused on her plate and putting one bite after another into her mouth.

"It'll be okay."

Rangiku nodded, but she was not sure when it would be okay again.

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Poor Rangiku. I feel like I abuse her a little bit sometimes. But I love her!


	25. Forever and a Day

Wow. I'm one-quarter through with the drabbles. That just blows me away, especially since I'm still going strong, that's so exciting! Also exciting, I have a date, woo!

**Thanks** to: Blueberry Absinth, Solar Kitty, Renji's Girll, and MissTeak. You guys all get a pie or cookies or your choice

**Contest** reminder: the 100th reviewer will get a GinxRan one-shot to the idea of their choice! It's coming up O.O

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**25. Forever and a Day**

Rangiku was lucky if she caught a glimpse of Gin once a week as they went to their classes. She knew they were working towards a better future, but at the moment, it felt worse than living in the old shack. It was true she ate good meals and had a good roof above her head, but she was lonely.

Every night, she woke up, crying out for what was not there.

After a month of this, the dorm head sat down with Rangiku. "It sounds like you're having trouble adjusting to living here at the dorm. Your roommate says you don't sleep through the night."

"Yeah, I guess so," she said. Rangiku did not see the point in denying it.

"Would it help, do you think, if you had a single room? Or would that make it worse?"

"Well, at least then I wouldn't wake up my roommate," Rangiku said. It would not matter. Either way she would not sleep through the night.

"I see," the woman said. "Then let's try a single room. I know this can be a hard transition sometimes."

Rangiku nodded, and after dinner, she moved her things to a new room. Then she had to study. There was always something to do, which was why she could only catch glimpses of her friend; he was even busier than she was.

A week later, she crawled into bed. She stared at the ceiling. Rangiku was still not sure which was better, silence or strange breathing.

Something banged against her window. Rangiku frowned and opened the shutters and peered out. All at once, a shape came hurtling through the window frame. A warm, rough hand covered her mouth before she could yell.

"Shh, I don' wanna get thrown out b'fore I can say 'lo," Gin said.

Rangiku threw her arms around her friend and held on tight. Gin's hand left her mouth and he hugged her until she could hardly breathe. It was a wonderful hug, just what she needed. "How'd you know I was here? How'd you get here?"

"Listened ta a lil' gossip, snuck around a little," Gin said and grinned.

"I haven't seen you in weeks."

"Yeah, they got us so busy. Learnin' stuff right n' left an' they jus' put me in a couple year 4 classes," he said.

Rangiku yawned. She was busy enough with her advanced coursework in year one, she could not imagine how Gin could do it all, but then, she knew her friend was far smarter than most everyone. "Yeah, I'm always tired."

"Le's go ta bed."

She nodded, and Gin led her to her bed. They curled up together, basking in the familiar presence. Rangiku slept through the night.

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Fluff, weeeeee.


	26. Light

Was about to go to bed before I remembered I needed to post this . At least I remembered!

**Thanks** to: MissTeak and Blueberry Absinth

**Contest**: 100th reviewer gets a RanxGin one-shot!

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**26. Light**

Gin lay watching Rangiku sleep. He had spent nearly every night in her room since she had been given a single room. She had told him how badly she had slept, how lonely she was when she scarcely saw him. He knew she held tight to him all through the first night he had come to keep her company, when normally she moved and turned every which way in her sleep.

But he had not told her of his sleepless nights he spent silently staring into the dark. Or that he had discovered if he stared at the dark too long it spread every which way until he remembered to blink.

When Rangiku was there, he did not have to think about the dark, because she held it at bay, she brought a little light into his world. He could hardly remember how life was before she had entered his life.

Once, Rangiku had said she did not start to count the days until she met him, but his days seemed one long blur until she brought everything into focus.

He thought it would just worry her more if he told her that. So instead, he snuck into her room and they both felt a little better.

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Reviews are nice, ideas are nice too. I still have some 33 drabble ideas to think up, ack.


	27. Dark

A sort of companion piece to the pevious drabble, Light. Mmm not much else to say, sleepy, did my fist shift as a bartender, and that's a looong shift.

**Thanks**: to Blueberry Absinth, Renji's Girll, MissTeak, Sonozaki-sama, and Lynne Harrow. You guys rock =)

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**27. Dark**

Sometimes, Gin worried about how much Rangiku depended on him. She trusted and accepted him, even when she did not know the full story. Gin hoped she never found out the full story, and he hoped that she could always go on believing in him.

The trouble was, Gin knew better than that. He had done some things that were dark, even by rukongai standards. He knew there was another side to him, and sometimes that side scared him, but there were times he welcomed that side.

It may have been why he wore a perpetual mask. It was better to hide behind a false smile all of the time than reveal that dark, twisted snake at any time.

Rangiku thought of him as a feisty, mischievous fox. Sometimes he wished that was the end of it. He always hoped that was what she always thought, that she would only ever see the fox.

Gin was afraid that Rangiku would se his other side, that he would taint her with his own darkness. It was a thought that could keep him up at night, because he knew, as young as he was, that he could never escape it.

No matter what, Ichimaru Gin would always have shadows, no matter how much he basked in Rangiku's light.

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How'd you all like it?


	28. Faith

Ugh, my internet just killed all the extra stuff I wrote in. Boo to bad internet! Anyway, I had fun writing today's drabble! Now, off to sleep, tomorrow I have a dentist appointment to get my tooth worked on, ew.

**Thanks** to: Blueberry Absinth, MissTeak, Sensei7, Sonozaki-sama, Renji's Girll, and Solar Kitty

**Congratulations** to **Solar Kitty**, the winner of the 100th review contest. It seems she was watching the review number pretty closely. Hopefully she'll have an idea for the one-shot soon!

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**28. Faith**

"Gin, no, you can't do it," Rangiku said.

"Sure I can," Gin said, sprawled on Rangiku's bed. "Ya know I'm sneaky enough."

"But why does it have to be him? If you get caught you could get in so much trouble. And you probably will. He's at the top of his class in everything."

"He wasn' when they put me in th' third year stuff," Gin said. "I had 'im beat, and he sure didn' like it. Nope, he didn' like it not one bit."

"But he's from one of the four great noble clans. They could kick you out for this."

"They won'. Don' worry so much, it'll be fun," Gin said. "Besides, he deserves ta be brought down a bit."

"He's a noble, I told you to forget about it!"

"Keep it down, I wanna be able to come back here, y'know," Gin said and waved a hand to shush her before continuing. "Nah, I don' wanna. He wasn' nice ta you. I don' care if he is a noble an' a third year. Ya apologized when it was his fault ya both dropped yer books. He had no reason ta make sure ya got a detention outta it."

"Please?"

"Gonna do it," he said. "Now, get some sleep."

The next day, there was an assembly for all of the students; they were separated by year. Rangiku did not find Gin until part way through the assembly, where he sat in the middle of the fourth years, looking as comfortable as if he had never moved from the spot. She knew he had not been there the entire time though, his hair stood out too much for her to miss him. Rangiku cringed a bit. She knew exactly what that meant.

Eventually, Kuchiki Byakuya was asked to present a short speech on behalf of his clan. He was seated in the front row so that he would be able to reach the podium easily. He stood.

He took a step forward, and fell, landing heavily. His shoes were tied together. The auditorium was silent; everyone knew better than to laugh at a great noble. In front of him, at least. Later, Rangiku knew no one would be able to stop talking about it.

Kuchiki's fingers flew as he untied his shoes, and he looked up in Gin's direction. For a moment, Rangiku saw a murderous look on the noble's face before he composed himself and presented his speech, looking as cool and calm as any noble could hope to look. It amazed Rangiku a little; she would have been crying and bright red, unable to give the speech.

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Enjoy the lighter drabble after last time's gloomy one?


	29. Colors

It's the **one month anniversary** of these drabbles, and I haven't missed a single one! I'm so happy about that! Had myself a day that started off not so fun; had a tooth of mine drilled on a loooot . but then I went to the craft store and discovered a lot of things that were on sale! ^_____^ So I splurged, which was bad, but I saved 50% on almost everything, at least!

**Thanks** to: Solar Kitty, MissTeak, Blueberry Absinth, Renji's Girll. You guys are so dedicated, it makes me smile!

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**29. Colors**

"Um, would it be all right if I sit down here, Matsumoto-san?"

Rangiku looked up from her breakfast to see a small, serious-looking girl with glasses. "I guess."

"Thank you," the girl said, and took a seat. Immediately, she pulled out a book and began reading as she ate.

"Who're you?"

"Ise Nanao," the girl said. Rangiku wondered if she was surprised she had asked. "We are both in the year one advanced class."

"…Oh." Rangiku did not know the names of any of her classmates. She had not wanted to; none of them were Gin.

Nanao resumed reading, but Rangiku wondered why anyone would want to sit with her; after all, Rangiku avoided everyone. She wracked her memory, but it was hazy, just lessons and Gin. She had a feeling there was something she ought to have known about the girl.

Rangiku did remember something she had told herself once though, that she would live a beautiful life. Here she was, sulking at a lonely table, living a gray life.

"So, Nanao, what do you like to do for fun?"

"Well, mostly I study."

"Let's have some fun today!

"Like what?"

Her answer was so tentative that Rangiku was sure the girl needed a friend. "Like, um, anything that's not studying! What's fun around here?"

"Well, I like reading…"

"Nah, too much like studying. Oh! We should learn traditional dancing. Then we can be as graceful as ladies."

Yes, Rangiku decided, she would live a beautiful life, she would fill it with a thousand colors and lots of laughter. Everything good, that's what she wanted.

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Partly inspired by Rangiku's theme song.


	30. Exploration

Ahhh, was too tired from work to do more than vegetate today. Hopefully tomorrow I will get a new one or two written up, though I have to baby sit my cousin tomorrow night. But he's a good kid, I'm just tired from work . Anyway, enjoy the story.

**Thanks** to: SwirlzSmile, MissTeak, Bluberry Absinth, Beautiful Nightmare07, and Solar Kitty, love you all! Also, to Solar Kitty....think up your one-shot idea soon!! (I can harrass her about it as she has been my friend for a looooong time XD)

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**30. Exploration**

It was a rare free day, and Rangiku had barely left the breakfast hall when Gin slung his arm around her shoulder. "Let's go exploring today."

She smiled; this was the reason she had so no to her friends' invitations to go out. Rangiku had settled into life at the academy and had an ever-growing circle of friends, as did Nanao who had become Rangiku's best friend. "'Kay."

He led her away from the dorms and familiar training grounds. "So, I guess after the big break comin' up, they're throwin' me in with the fifth years."

"Guess they dunno what to do with you," Rangiku said, but at the rate Gin was going, he'd end up in the sixth year classes soon. Then he'd leave her behind while she studied and he would do important missions. Already, Gin knew he would be a seated officer when he left. It made Rangiku feel a little ordinary.

"Guess I study too much."

Rangiku remembered how voraciously Gin read books and absorbed knowledge. She was half-wondering if Gin had a bet with himself to see if he could graduate in a year, just for fun. She had seen him reading fourth and fifth year books when he'd just barely entered the third year courses.

"I guess I socialize too much," Rangiku said after a few long moments.

"But yer grades are good, an' you're havin' fun."

"That's true."

Gin glanced at her and hit her arm lightly. "Yer it." He raced off.

"Hey!" Rangiku took off after him. Gin was faster than she was, but she was a little smaller and was more agile. Rangiku flew under fences Gin had to climb over and slithered through nooks and crannies he had no hopes of making.

It took her a few minutes, but eventually, she leapt at Gin, tackling him to the ground. "Ha, got you!"

After a moment, Gin's eyes flashed open at her. He said nothing, but Rangiku had the feeling he was amused. Finally, he said, "Ya knocked the breath outta me."

"You probably deserved it," she said and climbed off of him.

"Prolly." He sat up and looked around. "Nice view up here."

They were on a nearly flat roof that looked out over a park on one side, a market on the other. "Oh, it's so pretty," Rangiku said, looking out over the park.

"Good place ta watch people, maybe cause a little trouble."

Rangiku leaned against Gin's back. "There's a view for each of us."

"Looks like we found a good place."

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This one was really random O.o


	31. Seeing Red

Baby-sat my lil' cousin. Was pretty fun. Sadly, I made as much babysitting him as I make working, on average. Ugh. Also, if anything looks oddly.... fanfictiondotnet is giving me some trouble. For awhile, it would not register my backspace button. (I write the author's note deals on the editing function on the website, rather than in the actual word document.) Anyway, enjoy

**Thanks** to: Renji's Girll, Blueberry Absinth, and Lynne Harrow

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**31. Seeing Red**

Gin always wore his mask when he fought. Sometimes, he grimaced during particularly rough attacks, but always he was aware of the mask. A ready smile and hidden eyes could reveal nothing about what he was feeling.

His classmates and professors believed it was something of a ploy to put opponents off their guard. It might do that, somewhat, but that was not the focus. When Gin fought, he could not keep the dark side of him at bay. He felt that darkness sweep up into his blade, through his whole being. He kept his eyes near closed to hide what lay beneath, opening them rarely for a fierce attack, an attack that to an enemy would be deadly, that was his way.

Gin wondered what would happen if he ever dropped the mask he had perfected so long ago, if his classmates would shun him. If Rangiku would push away from him. Grim thoughts told him she would.

But still, when Gin fought, that shadow rose, and the world was awash in red. Sometimes, he wondered how he stayed in control during those fights. He wondered how he did not kill the other students. He knew he could; he was strong, much more so than the others around him. It made him certain that one day he would be captain.

If he was always the master of himself.

So Gin made his fights a game. He did not display his full power; instead, he taunted and tricked, riling opponents up into a fury. In return, he kept calm and his resolve was firm, and he remained in control.

That was how Gin thought sometimes, but then his mood would turn again. Then he knew his taunts in battle were simply games to keep him amused. He did have a dark delight in riling his opponents, toying with them as he willed. During those times, he knew Rangiku would not turn away from him

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To bed and work I shall go!


	32. Start

Well, tomorrow I'm up super early to go to a gem and mineral show before I head to work. I'm so excited, and I'm really hoping I don't end up spending about a million dollars . The worst part is that now I can argue buying all this stuff because I'm starting to sell some of it. Ack.

**Thanks** to: Blueberry Absinth, Beautiful Nightmare07, MissTeak, Zero434, and Solar Kitty. You guys do wonders for making my world all happy.

**Contest Stuff**: Solar Kitty finally chose her one-shot idea stuff! I'm gonna keep it under wraps, but hopefully I'll get to start working on it soon.

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**32. Start**

Gin sat in a row of other shinigami. Today, he did not wear the blue and white cloth of an academy student. Today, his uniform was black, tied with white. He was the shortest boy in the sixth year; he was the youngest. However, Gin had still managed to graduate at the top of his class.

He smirked. He had always known he was smarter than nearly everyone. Now he had proof. He liked knowing it for certain very much.

The names began to be called, and Gin's smile fell a bit. There was a name that would not be called that day, that of Matsumoto Rangiku. Instead she was with the newly made second year students, that Gin did regret.

At the same time, when his name was called, Ichimaru Gin made his way across a stage, shook hands with captain after captain. Then he received a hearty greeting from his new superior, Captain Aizen Sousuke. It was rare that a student was given a seated position upon leaving the academy, making his graduation even more memorable.

Gin knew good things were expected of him now. He expected amazing ones, great and awesome.

As he left that stage, he was sure he could do any of them.

Soon, the ceremony was over, and given way to festivities and parties celebrating. Rangiku ran up to Gin through the crowd and threw her arms around him. "You did it!"

Gin wondered, though, if she would be sad that night, if her joy was at a cost. "Yup. An' soon 'nuf you'll be there too."

"It's like a new start," Rangiku said. "You'll be amazing."

"So'll you. Yur doin' real well, even though ya don' study, aren'tcha?"

It was true, Rangiku was doing well, despite herself. Perhaps she, too, would become a seated shinigami. She hoped so, she wanted to keep stride with Gin, to be with him always. But he leapt ahead of her. It was impossible to keep up with him.

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So what'd you think? It feels like, to me, Gin graduated sooo fast. Then again, he actually did graduate super fast.


	33. Lost and Found

So tired, bought a bunch of stuff, worked all night long. Even had a cute guy leave his number for me on his receipt, woo.

**Thanks** to: Mihara-chan, MissTeak, Sonozoki-sama, Solar Kitty, and Beautiful Nightmare07

**Dedication**: to Solar Kitty for coming up with the idea

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33. Lost and Found

It had been quite some time since Gin last saw Rangiku; for over two years, his new position in squad five and Rangiku's life at the academy had not given them any opportunity to spend any time with each other.

There had been a handful of letters, but neither of them was much for such exchanges. Penned words did not smile nor hug or laugh. They were just black and white, and jokes became lost without looks and tones to convey them.

It did not help that Rangiku's handwriting was near indecipherable.

Gin had finally found out a day that Rangiku had a day free from classes. Then he had begged Captain Aizen to allow him to have that day free as well. He would never tell Rangiku that he had given up a week's vacation for that one day that year. If he could not spend any of his vacation with Rangiku, he did not want to bother with it. It simply was not fun without her.

Gin whistled as he walked down the corridor towards Rangiku's room. He was going to get her early, before she ate breakfast. Otherwise, he was afraid she would be swept away by her friends. He knocked on her door and waited.

"Yes?" A dark-haired woman said, pushing her glasses up her nose. "Oh, it's you. Just a second."

Gin blinked. He had not expected Rangiku to have a roommate. After a moment, he recognized her; it was Nanao, Rangiku's best friend. He waited, wishing he could hear what the girls were talking about. However, unless he opened the door, he was not going to have any luck.

A few moments later, Nanao opened the door again. "She has to get dressed, just wait here." Then the dark-haired woman slipped past him and towards the dining hall.

She had grown a great deal since he last saw her, when she and Rangiku were in their second year. Now the girls were in their fourth year. Then Gin realized that Rangiku had probably grown as well; he certainly had. It made him apprehensive. Who would open the door? Would it still be his Ran-chan?

The door flew open then and a tall woman dragged him inside in a flurry. Before he knew it, he was sitting on a bed, and Rangiku was looking down at him. Her hair cascaded down her back in waves, and she was no longer a little girl. No, she was quite the opposite. Gin had never seen such an amazing sight before; Rangiku had curves enough to make a man's heart stop. Gin had trouble looking away from the deep vee in Rangiku's robes revealing such an abundance of breast that he was sure he was blushing.

"Gin, you're here!" she said. "You're so tall and handsome now, wow!"

Rangiku flew at him then, wrapping her arms around him. But she was still standing. Gin found himself buried in the softest pillows he had ever felt. He wrapped his arms around her tightly.

Then he tried to push away from Rangiku; he could not breathe.

"No way. I'm not letting you go for the rest of the day."

Gin pushed away until he could take a gasp of air. "Then ya might kill me."

"I'm so sorry, Gin," she said and sat beside him, hugging him in a less dangerous sort of way.

"I'm not." He said it before his mind caught up with his stupid mouth.

Rangiku giggled. "They're really nice aren't they?" She posed for him, showing off her assets.

"Ya shouldn' do tha."

"Why not? A girl should show off if she has something good."

Gin was not sure what to tell her. The truth off it was, he did like the sight, quite a bit. What man would not? He may have lost time with her, but the pleasure of seeing Rangiku now may have made up for it entirely.

* * *

So veeery tired.


	34. Shades of Grey

Had a really busy night. Made me tired, tired. At least I'm off tomorrow, I'm going shopping for an outfit to wear at work on St. Patrick's day. It's exciting!

**Thanks** to: Solar Kitty, Blueberry Absinth, Mihara-chan, Mokie09, MissTeak, Beautiful Nightmare07. You guys are all so sweet ^__^

**

* * *

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34. Shades of Grey

There were some people in the world who saw things in black and white. Gin had always known there were many shades of grey in between. He knew this partly because he was not always a good person; sometimes, he was a very dark person. However, he was good often enough that he knew he was not entirely dark.

He was pretty sure Rangiku was a pretty, light shade of grey.

But when he began to examine himself, he began to worry. How much black can be added to white until there is no more grey and simply became black. He was willing to do a number of dark, twisted things he would never even mention to Rangiku if someone else did such things.

He worried he would lose his grey and become black, and that black would wipe out any white and grey still left in him. He worried so much because he had decided he was dark grey, and he was just barely a shinigami.

Gin wondered if he would do terrible things one day.

* * *

Bit of a dark one *sigh*


	35. Forgotten

Ack, this is really short. It's actually a full written page in the notebook I wrote it in while I was babysitting though.

**Thanks** to: MissTeak, Blueberry Absinth, Renji's Girll, Sonozaki-sama, Beautiful Nightmare07

* * *

35. Forgotten

Rangiku had sent Gin six letters, one each month. She had not seen nor heard from him in that time. It was true there had been few letters before, but Gin had always sent her a reply within a month. Even if the correspondence was just a line or two long, it still made its way to her.

She went between worry and anger the way Nanao went through books.

Finally, Rangiku searched the gotei thirteen roster for Gin. What she found made her forget her worry. She was angry. Gin was now ninth seat instead of fifteenth in squad five. He had sustained one minor injury.

While Rangiku was reassured of Gin's safety, it also meant he had received her letters. It also meant he had simply not written her back.

She wondered whether he was just lazy and busy, or if he was telling her something else. Rangiku was beginning to wonder if Gin wanted to forget all about her.

* * *

Poor Rangiku =(


	36. Dreamer

So I'm doing something I've never done before. I'm going to be casually dating two guys at the same time. I dunno how I really feel about it yet. Then again, I've never dated much--I was always kind of focused on school and caught up in a thousand silly little things. I'm getting a life at long last, it's kind of odd. Now I need some more girl friends. Ah well, we'll see how that one goes too. I DO work with a million girls. Does anyone read these blurbs?

**Thanks** to: Blueberry Absinth, Beautiful Nightmare07, Renji's Girll, zero434, Curry Kitty, MissTeak, CrossroadsofLife. Wow, I had a lot of reviewers for last time's bummer of a chapter. Thanks so much! *hands out roses*

This drabble is something off a companion to the last drabble.

* * *

**36. Dreamer**

"Get out!" She screamed.

"Ah, but Ran-cha, didn' ya miss me?"

"Out!" A moment later, Gin was on his ass in the hall, hair going every which way. Upon reflection, Gin realized he probably should have knocked first. Then again, he was a healthy young man. Even if Rangiku beat him within an inch of his life, he thought it would be worth it to see her in her lingerie.

When Rangiku opened the door a moment later, Gin still could not wipe the grin from his face.

"I should kill you."

"But ya won'."

"I haven't heard from you in… since I saw you last."

Gin held up the letters. "Got 'em yesterday. Ya sent them letters ta the wrong address."

"Still!"

"Didn' have yours."

"Oh."

"Let's go to our spot." Gin said and took Rangiku's hand, leading her towards the door.

"But I have plans today already."

Gin halted. "How often do ya see yer friends? How often do ya see me?"

She had gone out with them a week earlier. It had been months since she had seen Gin. Rangiku was still angry though. It was easier to track her down than it was for her to figure out where in the seireitei Gin was.

"Fine, I'll cancel."

"You know," Gin said as they climbed up onto their roof an hour later. "It won' always be like this."

"Like what?"

"Havin' ta wait so long ta see each other. All this worry an' such."

"You think so?"

"I know so. Jus' wait til yer a shinigami," he said. Gin sat down, dangling his legs over the edge of the roof, watching the people who walked by below him.

"I wonder if I'll ever become a seated officer."

"Yup," Gin said. "We're gonna do great things. I'll be a cap'n and you'll be one too. We'll jus' about rule seireitei."

"Nah, I don't want to be a captain. They have too much work to do. But maybe I'll be a lieutenant."

"So cap'n and lieutenant. Y'know what? I wan' a whole grove of them persimmon trees. Then I'll have the best dried persimmons 'round."

"And I'll eat them all!"

"Nah, I wan' some too."

"Okay, fine. I guess I can share."

"Ain't I the one tha's making 'em?"

"So?"

Gin laughed and pulled her to him, keeping an arm around her shoulders. "Love ya ta pieces, Ran-chan."

"Same to you." Rangiku wrapped her arms around him. Gin did not mind at all.

* * *

Seemed like a happier chapter was due =)


	37. Mist

This drabble is connected with the last two. They just kind of fit together a bit, oddly enough.

**Thanks** to: Blueberry Absinth, Beautiful Nightmare07 (thanks for the advice by the way!), zero434, and MissTeak. Love ya all!

* * *

**37. Mist**

It was late when Gin walked Rangiku back to her room, munching on dried persimmons as they went. It made Rangiku wonder what Gin's persimmons would taste like some day. Perfect, she was sure.

Gin walked her to her dorm as she finished her last persimmon. "Was a good night, was'n it?"

"I wish it lasted forever!"

"Maybe not quite tha' long. Never get ta be a cap'n then, would I?"

Rangiku laughed and threw her arms around Gin's shoulders, pulling him down to kiss his cheek. "You're weird."

"Nothin' weird about havin' goals," he said and bent to kiss the top of her head. "I gotta get back, stuff ta do fer Cap'n Aizen."

Rangiku sighed. "But I always miss you!"

"Me too. C'mon, it'll be okay. Ya got a lotta friends n' stuff ta do. An' them friends of yours like ta go out a whole lot, don' they?"

"They're not you."

"Course not. Ain't no one like me."

"Exactly," Rangiku said, holding tight to Gin.

"C'mon now, I gotta go," Gin said, prying her arms off of him.

Rangiku relinquished her hold. "Come back soon!"

Gin was already walking away as Rangiku spoke. He lifted a hand and waved. Without turning back he said, "Bye-bye."

He faded into the night mist, vanishing like a ghost. It was as if the mist had claimed one its own, calling it back home. As Rangiku watched the mist rise, swirl, and fall, she wondered what secrets it was hiding, what secrets Gin was hiding behind that smile of his. It made her worry.

* * *

3:33am! Haha, make a wish everyone! =)


	38. Future

Blah to getting the worst set of tables ever on St. Paddy's day. Made soo little money compared to the other servers, ugh.

**Thanks to: **Sensei7 (yay for reading blurbs!), Blueberry Absinth, MissTeak, and Beautiful Nightmare07

* * *

**38. Future**

It seemed like one day, Rangiku was beginning her third year and then the next day, she was seated in a row of six years, of her friends, waiting for her name to be called. Behind her somewhere, Gin sat watching with the rest of squad five, she knew. He had caught her eyes as she walked to her seat. He was as eye-catching as ever with his silver hair.

Not that she was not eye-catching herself. She had been voted most beautiful by her class, a fact she had been flaunting to no end as of late. Rangiku knew she was beautiful; it was hard for the girls to come close to her phenomenal curves and strawberry tresses, and that was far from the end of her beauty.

What Rangiku did have some trouble grasping was that she was a smart woman. She was graduating in the top ten percent of the advanced class. She wondered if Gin would be proud of her even though she was not at the top of her class, nor had she skipped years as her friend had done.

Her friends began to walk up, one by one. When Nanao crossed the stage, Rangiku let out a whoop; her friend had graduated with the top grades and had found a place, along with Rangiku in the eighth squad.

Then Rangiku Matsumoto was called out across the crowd. As she crossed the stage, she could not help but be proud, shaking captain's hands, even the head captain's hands. Today, everything changed. Today, there was a whole new world for her to experience.

Gin's world.

Once more, she would see his world, even if he was far ahead of her already. She knew he had far from forgotten her. Since he had shown her the letters that had finally made their way to him, he had written a line or two to her every two weeks, even when she was slower to reply to the letters.

When the ceremony finished and the freshly graduated students made their way away towards the crowd, Rangiku stood still, searching the crowd for Gin. There were plenty of people she needed to congratulate, parents of friends she needed to meet, but until she saw Gin, none of that mattered.

"Whatcha lookin' for?" Gin said, his breath tickling her ear.

"You," Rangiku said, spinning towards him. "How'd you do that?"

"Magic."

Rangiku hit his arm. "I did it!"

"Ya did good," he said and hugged her tightly. "I'm damn proud of ya."

"Really?"

"Yeah," he said and led her away from the crowd. "So I got ya a present."

"Really? What'd you get me? Can I have it now? What is it? I wanna open it now!"

Gin chuckled. "Yer impatient. Maybe I should make ya wait."

"No!"

Gin laughed again and pulled out a small box from a pocket. Rangiku took it eagerly, examining the package. It was neatly wrapped in silver paper with an equally neat bow done with a sparkly silver ribbon. A second later, the ribbon was on top of Gin's head and the paper was drifting around Rangiku's feet.

She opened the box and stared. "It's beautiful."

"Ya like it?"

Rangiku nodded and flung her arms around Gin. "I love it. Thank you so much. I'll always wear it."

"Yer silly."

"No I'm not," she said. "Hold the box so I can put the necklace on."

He did as she asked and Rangiku slid the silver chain under her hair, then pulled the tail through a silver ring. The tail settled between her breasts and the circle settled just beneath the dip in her neck.

"How do I look?" Rangiku said and struck a pose.

"Like the most beautiful girl in seireitei."

"Y'know, I got voted—"

"Yeah, I know. Seems them students got somethin' righ'."

Rangiku blushed. "So are you gonna take me out to eat too? I deserve it for graduating, you know. Oh, and I want dried persimmons too."

"Whatever ya want, Ran-chan."

* * *

School was so fast. Maybe I should have drawn it out more. I wonder. Too late now, I suppose. Wish me luck for tomorrow! Got my date in the evening, eek!


	39. Fork in the Road

Well, I got two drabbles done tonight, woo! I also went on my date. It went okay. They guy did everything basically perfectly. He was nice, thoughtful, sweet, talkative the entire time. But there was no spark whatsoever for me. I feel really bad about it, because he's so obviously really into me. I'm not sure what to tell the guy, because I know he's going to ask for a second date *sigh*

**Thanks** to: Blueberry Absinth, Beautiful Nightmare07, MissTeak, and Solar Kitty (oh, I now have the lyrics for and started planning out your one-shot! Now I just have to find some time to write it, ugh.)

* * *

**39. Fork in the Road**

Gin was not sure when it had happened, but at some point he had begun spending more and more time with his captain. Aizen often invited him to share meals, on special projects, even for calligraphy lessons. Gin was not exactly fond of calligraphy, but he had wanted to please his captain; he knew it would help him reach his goals.

At the same time, Gin was amazed by Aizen, and he trusted the captain implicitly. There was a kinship between them that he had thought he could never have. There was a darkness to Aizen that the man hid with his kindness like Gin hid his with a smiling mask.

"Gin, I wish you were my third seat," Aizen said. "You would become my lieutenant so much more quickly then."

"Ya wan' me ta be your lieutenant?"

"Yes, Gin. You are truly an amazing individual," Aizen said, setting a calligraphy brush down. "We will do great things together. One day, we will become gods, immortal."

"Immortal? Not dying, ever?"

"Indeed, with power greater than all the other captains," Aizen told him. Then he told him some of his plans for the future.

Gin was fascinated. He knew he could easily achieve the goals he had set out—making it to the top of what he had thought possible. Aizen was offering him a new world of possibilities.

He already knew he would follow Aizen. Gin knew he might have to turn away from the gotei thirteen, but he also knew he was not able to turn away from Aizen's offer, those wild dreams that tore at his soul.

"I want you to become my third seat immediately."

"But ya can only have one thir' seat, righ?"

"That's right, Gin. But he's a bad man, and a terrible third seat. We cannot let your gifts go to waste so that such a fool can claim status that does not truly belong to him," Aizen said. "We will have to dispose of him. We will set it up so that it appears a hollow has killed him."

"Ya wan' me ta kill a shinigami?"

"Yes, Gin," Aizen said. "It is necessary."

"'Kay."

* * *

Ah Gin... you make me so sad =(


	40. Nature's Fury

Man, I had to have a whole long drawn out text-chat thing with the guy I went on the date with about how I did not want to date him and that he really had not done something horribly wrong. It got really annoying . Also, my cat is on my lap and trying to steal my hot poccket from my hand.

**Thanks** to: MissTeak, Blueberry Absinth, Renji's Girll, Beautiful Nightmare07, Sensei7, Sonozaki-sama, and zero434

* * *

**40. Nature's Fury**

Gin slammed the door shut and immediately curled up under several blankets, trying to banish the cold all around him.

"You're a blanket monster," Rangiku said and giggled.

"Rawr."

"It's not that bad in here."

Gin growled and pulled Rangiku inside the blanket nest. "Warm."

"You're silly," Rangiku said. "I love winter, it's so fun to watch the snow and drink hot cocoa!"

"Ya like that damn stuff outside?" Gin said. "Can' stand it. Howlin' winds, wet, muddy pants. Takes ten minutes ta put them snow gear on, another ten ta take it all off."

"I don't mind. Then there's snowball fights and all kinds of fun."

"Only thing I like is cuddlin' under blankets."

"That's my point. Winter is wonderful," Rangiku said. "Here we are all nice and toasty together, and the snow is outside falling so prettily. It's nice and cozy, isn't it?"

"If ya say so…"

"I know so."

* * *

a lil' fluffy =)


	41. At Peace

Work is doing terrible things to my hands. I have really sensitive hands, and I have to wash my hands at work with icky soap about 100 times a day, use bleach-water on tables.... It's just not a good thing. They broke out in a rash now. Also, yesterday it was 70F (21C) and today it is snowing and 30F (-1C). Just ew.

**Thanks** to: blackteaplease (big tea fan? I know I am =)), Blueberry Absinth, Beautiful Nightmare07, MissTeak, and ManonLeChat

**

* * *

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**41. At Peace**

"Yes, it was a hollow attack," Aizen said. "No, Ichimaru tried to save him but it was too late. Yes, that's right. An unfortunate incident, he was a good man."

Ichimaru only half listened as Aizen spun his tale. He looked down at the ex-third seat. He shut his eyes.

Gin remembered the feel of Shinsou shooting through the third seat's body. The touch of hot flecks of blood spattering across his face. The man had worn such a look of horror at that moment, but Gin had been so much stronger than that man.

Now, he would be third seat shortly. Sometime after, lieutenant. When he achieved bankai, captain. Then it would be the status of a god.

Gin told himself he was at peace with what he had done. He was not shaking nor crying nor even acting any different from how he normally did. So Gin told himself he was fine, and when Aizen led him home, he headed into his room in the barracks, giving his usual good night to his captain.

Half an hour later, however, he was in Rangiku's bed. Gin told her nothing, but she held him close to her bosom, arms tight around him even as his wrapped so hard about her waist he hoped he was not hurting her.

Gin wondered if he was strong enough to follow through with Aizen's plan, though. It was too late to turn back now.

Gin felt like he could not breathe, at first, but Rangiku brought him back. Her familiar scent, the flowers of her shampoo and something else that was simply her, the soft touch of her skin, and the soothing sound of her voice calmed him.

He fell asleep in her arms, forgetting for a little while what he had done, glad in the knowledge that Rangiku loved him even when he gave her questions no answers. Gin was thankful too that she did not voice the questions when he may have been too weak to tell Aizen's story.

* * *

I dunno, sad yet sweet?


	42. Heart Song

Today was a weird day for me at work. Sometimes, being a bartender kind of sucks, especially when almost none of the waitresses show up. Didn't help that I was tiiiired. Ah well, at least tomorrow I work in the evening instead of during the day. I watched New Moon tonight, out of boredom. I must say, if that werewolf were older..... yum. Then I saw the vampire shirtless, and especially after so much nice werewolf abs, it was just ew. Odd question, how did you guys come up with your fanfictiondotnet names?

**Thanks** to: blackteaplease, MissTeak, Blueberry Absinth, Renji's Girll, zero434, and Beautiful Nightmare07, pie and cookies for all!

* * *

**42. Heart Song**

Gin watched sunlight make Rangiku's hair glitter, twinkling in and out of flecks of light. The tiniest breeze revealed a thousand more minute jewels. She was asleep.

Some time before, she had thrown herself down on the grass, using Gin's lap as her pillow. She never asked him or hesitated, Rangiku simply did. It was a strange quality amongst so many people who regarded him with careful words.

A strand of hair shifted across her face for a moment; Rangiku shifted. Gin moved the strand back into place, his long fingers brushing her cheek softly as a petal. Sometimes, it amazed him he could touch her so delicately with the same hands that caused so much destruction. Even more, he was still surprised she never shuddered away from those hands.

He let out a silent sigh. Something had been growing in Gin for some time, and now he knew what it was. It was going to cause trouble, he knew, but he was not sure he could deny it either. It was the reason he had never turned his back on her, never betrayed her.

At the same time, Gin realized he already had betrayed her. It would just be a very long time before she realized it.

Gin bent and kissed Rangiku's forehead as lightly as he could. Rangiku did not move. He knew she would not. She could sleep through a great deal of things if she wanted to.

He toyed with a strand of her hair, watching it reflect in the sunlight. "I love you, Ran-chan," he whispered ghost-soft.

* * *

fluff ..... 3 3 3


	43. Perfection

Too tired to write a note.

**Thanks** to: blackteaplease, sierraqueen, Renji's Girll, Beautiful Nightmare07, Blueberry Absinth, Solar Kitty, and Care Bears on Fire

* * *

**43. Perfection**

Lately, Rangiku had noticed people staring at her. Especially men. At first, she wondered if she had something hideous on her face, in her hair, something. It was so bad that it was not uncommon for a guy to walk straight into a wall.

"I just don't get it, Gin," she said. "I'm not a freak or anything, right?"

"Nah, even if ya hang out wi' me yer not a freak," he said.

"Then what is it?"

"Ya really don' know?"

"No."

"Three weeks ago ya started wearin' yer uniform different."

"So?"

"Ain't that when them fellows started walkin' inta stuff?"

"I dunno."

Gin ruffled Rangiku's hair. "It is."

"What's that have to do with anything?"

"Ran-chan, ya stopped pinnin' yer uniform closed," he said. "And ya don' think the boys'd notice?"

"It's not that bad, is it?"

Gin had to laugh. Sometimes, it amazed him how clueless she could be. "Nah, it ain't bad at all, I s'pose. Yer just hot stuff, an' now that they can see yer boobs, they're done fer."

"Then they like it?"

"Le's put it this way," he said. "They're smilin' before an' after they walk into them walls."

"Really?"

"Yep," Gin said. He did not like the change himself. He wanted to keep Rangiku all to himself. He was afraid that would not be possible soon. Every guy was gaining interest in Rangiku. Gin could not blame them; she was just about perfect.

* * *

Random theme


	44. Reflection

Soooo the guy I was hoping would call me to set up a date DID in fact call! I was worried--I'd been expecting a call on Sunday or Monday, so it was a pleasant surprise. I can't wait for Friday! ^____^ I need to do a lot of serious writing soon, so I have a stock pile for my trip in case I do have internet most of the time. That'd be great to be able to update at least some of the time I'm in Europe for two weeks, y'know?

**Thanks** to: MissTeak, Beautiful Nightmare07, Blueberry Absinth, Care Bear on Fire (I'm a girl, by the way =) haha), and Solar Kitty

* * *

**44. Reflection**

Rangiku turned this way and that, admiring her silhouette, the curve of her breasts. Rangiku adjusted her uniform lower and higher, until she found the perfect amount of cleavage to reveal.

Next, she tilted her chin, loving how the light fell across her cheek bones. Even her little mole gained attention; it made her beauty just that much more memorable.

Her eyes were the perfect shade of blue to go with her hair. She could spend hours on her hair alone. Rangiku tossed her hair, watching the shine in the mirror. Rangiku loved the new layers to her hair; it made her waves stand out just right.

Silver flashed on the mirror, Rangiku yelped.

"Ya found out ya were pretty, huh?" Gin said.

"I told you to knock!"

"Ya never care all them other times I come in."

"I did the time you walked in on me changing."

"Yer in yer uniform now."

"That's not the point."

"Sure."

Rangiku followed Gin's gaze. She snorted. "You think you look pretty good, too."

"So?" Gin said. "Nothing wrong with admiring something as handsome as this."

"You're terrible."

"An' yer beautiful."

* * *

Goes with the previous chapter just a bit, I suppose.


	45. Everyday Magic

First, man, five more days and we'll be at 50 drabbles in a row. *dances* Second, I've had a number of comments about how random some of the drabbles are, which makes me wonder if I wasn't really clear about what these are. Basically, I have a pre-made list of 100 themes I got off the 'net somewhere, and for each theme, I come up with a Ran-Gin centric drabble/one-shot sort of deal. Some of them are loosely connected, but for the most part, are completely random and subject to the whims are the themes. The themes are also the title of each chapter, if that helps explain things. Sorry for any confusion.

**Thanks** to: MissTeak, blackteaplease, Blueberry Absinth, Beautiful Nightmare07, and Care Bear on Fire

* * *

**45. Everyday Magic**

Rangiku barreled through a stand of trees and threw herself at Gin. "This place is hard to find."

"S'worth it," he said, keeping his arms around her just a moment too long. Sometimes, he never wanted to let go.

"But what is it?"

"Told ya, s' a surprise. A good one."

"Tell me."

"Nah, I'ma show you instead," Gin said and took Rangiku's hand, leading her farther into the meadow. "Now, sit down."

Rangiku hesitated a moment, looking around at the wildflowers, but the pressure of Gin's hands on her shoulders led her to sit amongst the flowers. Gin sat beside her.

"Now what?"

"Shh. Hold still."

"Why?"

Gin turned and looked at her, his blue-green eyes flashing open at her for a long moment. He smiled, and Rangiku wondered if anyone could have more amazing eyes. She held his eyes until she forgot what she was doing. Gin turned away, still smiling, but his mask veiled his eyes once more.

A butterfly flitted in front of Rangiku's nose; it was not an everyday butterfly, but one of fabulous blues and greens that flitted across a black background. She did not dare gasp or make a sound, scared she would frighten the lovely creature off.

It perched on the tip of Rangiku's nose. She stared at it, feeling her eyes cross.

A few seconds later, Gin's laughter scared the butterfly away. "Tha' was some sight."

"You scared it!"

"Jus' wait."

Rangiku did, secretly hoping the butterfly would return. Instead, the meadow around her began to erupt in flying color; dozens of butterflies swooped and swirled, displaying their wings in a dance of such artistry she could only watch in silence.

After a time, Rangiku felt eyes on her. "What is it?"

"Ya got a butterfly in yer hair. Pretty."

He was watching her with opened eyes; it was a Gin she saw very rarely. "Thank you. You have a butterfly too."

"Ah, that's not very manly."

"It's perfect. Don't move," Rangiku said, and Gin followed her command for a number of minutes before the butterfly flew off on its own. "Thank you, Gin. This is just… amazing."

"Guess a present'd about go unnoticed after this."

"A present?"

"Yup."

"For me?"

"Uh huh."

"Why?" Rangiku said, but she was edging closer, excitement making her eyes wide.

"'Cause it reminded me of ya," Gin said and drew out a long, narrow box wrapped neatly in silver paper.

Rangiku tore through the wrapping and yanked the lid off the box. "It's the scarf I wanted!"

"Yep."

"Thank you!" Rangiku said and lifted the silk out gently. She examined every inch of it before donning it. "It's so pretty."

"Tha's why it reminded me of ya."

"You're silly," she said and wrapped her arms tight around him in a long bear hug.

* * *

Man, I really need to cut out a chunk of time to write up like... 10 drabbles, so I'll have a stock-pile while I'm in Europe.... and time to work on Twist of Fate AND the contest one-shot. Working 5-6 days a week really eats at time.


	46. Umbrella

I need to start sleeping at night. But I still have to write a drabble tonight. Ah well, I guess. Hopefully I won't like... fall asleep in the middle of my date tomorrow. I'm nervous now! And excited, haha.

**Thanks** to: MissTeak, Blueberry Absinth, Beautiful Nightmare07, CrossroadsofLife, Care Bear on Fire, and Solar Kitty

* * *

**46. Umbrella**

Rangiku looked out the window. Rain streamed down the glass, blurred the building in a haze. She was twenty minutes of walking from where she needed to be. Normally, Rangiku loved the rain. She even had a pair of galoshes with pink polka dot hearts from the human world just so she could splash around in the puddles.

The problem was, this morning the skies were a pure, brilliant blue, and only a tiny wisp of a cloud had dotted the sky. Rangiku's galoshes were far off in her barracks, along with her raincoat, and her umbrella.

Rangiku sighed and opened the door, and walked outside. She stood under the ledge and looked up towards the sky. "I wish it'd let up," she said, but she could not wait for more than a minute or two, otherwise, she would be late.

The rain seemed to pour down harder in response. After a sigh or two, Rangiku stepped out into the rain. Within three steps, the rain had stopped. She blinked.

"Ya were about ta get soaked."

"Gin!"

"Couldn' let a pretty girl get soaked, 'specially when she's gotta get ta a meetin'."

"You're so sweet."

"Yer jus' lucky I had an umbrella, an' I wander aroun' a lot."

But Gin was smiling in such a way Rangiku could not help but wonder if Gin had gone out of his way.

* * *

Been a looot of fluffy lately. Oooh boy.


	47. Burning

Well, my date did not go nearly as well as I hoped. In person, the guy ended up being rather odd/weird and annoyed me a bit. I mean, as a friend, he'd be okay, but definitely not as a boyfriend. And he wasn't nearly as cute as I remember *sigh* Oh well, I guess, right?

**Thanks** to: blackteaplease, MissTeak, Beautiful Nightmare07, Blueberry Absinth, Sonozaki-sama, Care Bear on Fire, Akane Higabana, and Curry Kitty. Wow, that's a looot of reviews this time, more than I've ever had at once before, I think. I loooove you guys!! cookies for all!

* * *

**7. Burning**

"My captain hates me," Rangiku said a moment after she burst into Gin's room.

"An' why does he hate ya?"

"I dunno, I'm too pretty to hate," she said. "But he made me train all day yesterday. Now I can hardly move."

"That don' mean he hates ya. Ain'tcha close ta promotion?"

"So? He hates me. I hurt," she said and eased herself down until she was sitting in front of Gin, her back towards him. "So you need to make it go away and give me the world's best massage."

"I do, do I?

"Yes."

"Ain't ya s'posed ta say please first?"

"No. This is a demand. If I say please, you can say no. You're not allowed to say no."

Gin chuckled. "My, my, that ain't all that nice of ya, Ran-chan. Maybe I shouldn' give ya that massage after all."

Rangiku was about to protest, but she felt Gin's hands settle on her shoulders. He began rubbing her shoulders and working his way down her back, but her uniform kept slipping and sliding across her skin. Every time Rangiku had nearly settled into a relaxed, vegetative state, the fabric would jar Gin's hands away from just the right spot to jab into her somewhere else.

"My uniform is stupid. This isn't working right at all," Rangiku said and pulled away out of Gin's grasp. Then, she began pulling off her top.

"Ran-chan, what're you doing?" Gin said as he shifted to face a wall, and if Rangiku did not know better, she would say he sounded a little uneasy.

"Taking my top off. Then the massage will be ten times better."

"Y'know, we're not lil' kids no more."

"I'll still be covered up in front," Rangiku said. "You can turn around now."

"Could've warned me," Gin said, but even so, he resumed the massage.

Rangiku shivered.

"See? Toldja ya shouldn' take yer shirt off. Now yer cold. Maybe I should stop, let ya cover back up."

"No! It feels amazing."

Rangiku was not cold at all. Rather, every touch seemed to light a trail of fire on her skin. For moments after Gin's hands caressed her back her nerves tingled in frenzied delight. It left Rangiku unable to fall into her normal, cat-like repose, but instead, she was entranced at every touch. Rangiku had never known a massage could be so breathtaking.

* * *

So sleepy, bartending tomorrow. Ugh.


	48. Troubling Thoughts

So tired. Eating my very late dinner/posting this, then bed, as I have work tomorrow because the manager wants me to cover for someone. Nooo day off for me after all .

**Thanks** to: MissTeak, Blueberry Absinth, Akane Higabana, and Care Bear on Fire. The cookies are on the table to the left.

**

* * *

**

**48. Troubling Thoughts**

Three days after Rangiku had made Gin give her a massage, she had another squad member give her a massage. She wanted the sensation of warm hands against her back, shooting sparks through her nerves once more.

It had been just a massage. The massage was excellent, and even longer than Gin's had been. In fact, the man massaging her had not seemed to want to stop. But it was not the same.

For two weeks, Rangiku had avoided her friend. She cancelled lunches for no reason, once she simply did not show up, but then Gin had tracked her down; she had to pretend she was sick.

Seeing him again scared her.

It scared Rangiku what his hands could do to her.

Now, she was afraid of the sound of his voice, seeing him, everything.

Rangiku was not afraid because she did not understand what it meant. Rather, she was beginning to realize exactly what it all meant. She knew Gin turned away like a gentleman, and did not try to sneak a glance at her bared breasts as her squad mate had. The massage had been nice, but Gin's hands never lingered.

Rangiku was afraid because she wanted his hands to linger long and slow. She wanted him to stare, fill his eyes with her bosom. She wanted to feel his skin under her hands, and taste him. She wanted to fill her senses with him until there was nothing else.

So Rangiku was avoiding him until she could get over it. Rangiku would not torture her friend that way. She would not break their friendship for her crush.

* * *

I think it's a fluffy time in Gin's and Ran's lives right now.


	49. Stirring of the Wind

i am sooo insanely tired it's just sad. Also, my ps2 is failing big time *sobs*. Also, check out **Akane Higabana**'s set of GinxRan drabbles, Never Meant to Belong!!

**Thanks** to: Akane Higabana, MissTeak, blackteaplease, Blueberry Absinth, Renji's Girll, Sonozaki-sama, and Care Bear on Fire.

* * *

**49. Stirring of the Wind**

Gin had begun tracking Rangiku down despite her excuses. He did not ask why, and Rangiku did not offer any explanations. She knew he was worried about it, but she had no idea what to do. He made her thoughts whirl into a muddle until she wanted to just stop thinking and let her body take over. But she could not do that.

Instead, she told Gin no, "That's a horrible idea."

"But ya love tha' restaurant."

"Not anymore. I don't know why I ever liked a place like that," Rangiku said. Gin had found the place some time back; he had been excited to show off the find, and even more pleased when Rangiku had fallen in love with it as well.

"How bou' we get ramen at one o' those stalls ya like?"

"Ew."

"Ya know, Ran-chan, yer being disagreeable t'day. Everythin' okay?"

"I am not being disagreeable. That's so mean to say!"

"Ah, I'm sorry—"

"No you're not, you're never really sorry, so don't bother apologizing. Ugh, you make me so mad!" she said. "All I did was say no to two bad ideas, and you start claiming I'm disagreeable. That's just stupid."

"But Ran-chan, ya haven' liked any of my ideas for a couple weeks now."

"Your fault for having bad ideas," Rangiku said. "If you're just going to start whining about it all now, then just leave."

"This ain't like ya."

"Don't you dare start. Just go. I can't talk to you anymore."

It was true, she could not. She watched Gin leave. Rangiku could barely keep from wrapping her arms around him and pulling him close. She wanted to tell him everything was okay, and kiss away his frowns. But that would ruin everything.

* * *

Sleeeeeep.


	50. Knowing How

Was supposed to do training at 9am, my trainer called in sick at 8:55. So I got to read a magazine for an hour or so. It sucked. Hopefully tomorrow goes better. Also, there's a girl who used to work at my restaurant, then quit, came in with a friend and a guy and she and the friend were such bitches to my sister (their waitress) that the guy waited til the girls were heading to the car, apologized profusely and left my sister a huge tip. Now the girl is working with us again (yup, I work with my sister) and she acts better than everyone, stole my magazine, and refuses to do her work while bitching about it the whole time. I might strangle her.

**Thanks** to: Solar Kitty, MissTeak, Lilygirl101, Akane Higabana, Blueberry Absinth, and Care Bear on Fire.

Also, it is drabble **50** I am halfway done! Wow. I can't believe it. O.o Cookies, lemonade, limeade, pie, tea, soda, what have you for all! Man, I can't believe I've done 50 of these in a row. I'm sad I won't be able to do 100 straight when I go on my trip =( Ah well, it can't be helped.

* * *

**50. Knowing How**

Pacing her room was not doing her any good. It probably would have helped if the room was longer, but only just a little. After several weeks of Rangiku avoiding Gin and picking fights with him, he was not coming around hardly at all. He did not even try to make plans with Rangiku anymore.

Something was going to have to give, and that something was Rangiku. The trouble was, she had to decide whether or not she was going to tell him how she felt. Really, she knew that answer already, otherwise she would not even have considered it an option.

The hardest part was figuring out how to tell him. Or maybe it was getting the courage to tell him. It could change everything; it terrified her. How was she supposed to know what the right way to do it all was?

Above all else, Rangiku could not lose Gin; she could not imagine life without him. She could not even remember life before Gin, not really. It was all one big blur.

Rangiku whirled around just before she hit her wall. The whole thing just was not fair. Why did feelings have to be so complicated? If only she knew how he would react beforehand.

* * *

Hmmm... maybe this was a good one for 50.... so much could change, hehe!


	51. Party

Sorry, another short one, but all but one of the drabbles I've written after this one so far then are longer than usual, if it helps at all.

**Thanks** to: MissTeak, Blueberry Absinth, Akane Higabana, Solar Kitty, Care Bear on Fire, Beautiful Nightmare07, Renji's Girll, and Lilygirl101. Wow, that was a lot for 50! Thank you!!

* * *

**51. Party**

Rangiku had gone to parties before, but when a cute boy invited her to a party at a bar, she had to admit she had never done that before. The more she thought on it, she was not sure why she had not.

She agreed. Besides, she had been feeling down lately trying to avoid Gin while wanting him nearby at the same time.

Rangiku dressed in clothes from the world of the living, like everyone else going. She preened before the mirror for several minutes before leaving; she looked hot. The purple and pink bandage dress clung to her like a second skin, showing off all of her curves. Rangiku was certain every curve she had was perfect.

When she got to the bar, the guys seemed to agree. Men all seemed to want to buy her a drink, so she let them. And somewhere in between dancing and flirting, Rangiku lost track of the sake. The stuff slid down so easily and it made everything more fun. Her worries faded away. Gin and her feelings were no longer so troublesome.

Rangiku laughed and let a few more men buy her drinks.

* * *

Blah, time to study for my bar test tomorrow .


	52. Health and Healing

I feel icky. Ugh. Shower and sleep time for meee.

**Thanks** to: MissTeak, blackteaplease, thepuddleofsmiles, Akane Higabana, Blueberry Absinth, Beautiful Nightmare07, and Care Bear on Fire (I have a bartending test because I am a newly made bartender, and my managers need to make sure I know my drinks. The best drink totally depends on the person. I will say beer is easiest to mess with.)

* * *

**52. Health and Healing**

When Gin saw the caller on his soul phone, his heart skipped half a beat. He snatched the phone up. "Ran-chan?"

"Gin," she said, drawling out his name slowly, giggling. "I forgot how to get home!"

"You what?"

"I dunno where my room is. Come help me! I'm sleepy," she said, and Gin could hear a loud yawn.

"Have ya been drinkin'?"

"So what if I am?"

Gin let out a long breath. "Where ya at?"

"Kaito's bar. Right?" Rangiku said. Gin heard her fumble with the phone, and heard her muffled voice ask several people where she was. Gin winced when he heard her say "wee" in the middle of it all and burst into a long fit of giggles.

He shoved his shoes on and made for the bar, glad he knew where it was. At this rate, Rangiku was going to get into trouble or wander off. Drunk in that area, he ought to beat some sense into her. Gin put it out of his mind how little he had seen Rangiku lately. He was beginning to give up; she did not seem to want to be anywhere near him. Still, she had called him for help, surely it meant something.

Probably that Rangiku was drunk and about to get into a lot of trouble.

Gin decided shunpo use would not be amiss.

He found Rangiku dancing in a kind of strange, stumbling, spinning dance that involved frequent tumbles. The tumbling always resulting in so much laughing Rangiku nearly fell over again.

"C'mon." Gin offered Rangiku his hand after she tumbled again. "Le's go home."

Rangiku took his hand after a moment. He pulled her up. "Dance with me," she said.

"Nah." He held her hand tightly and began leading her towards his room. The shape Rangiku was in he thought she might need someone to look after her, and his room was closer.

She stumbled and tripped until Gin stopped and picked her up.

"You're so nice and warm," Rangiku said into Gin's chest. He wondered if she was going to fall asleep before he even got back. He hoped not, as light as Rangiku was, she could still be a lot of dead weight if she passed out.

Instead, a hundred yards (100 meters) from his room, Ran let out a sickly groaning belch. Gin barely got her bent over a hedge fast enough. He held her hair back and kept her upright as she emptied her stomach. He had to admit it was pretty disgusting, but he had a strong stomach.

"Feelin' better?"

"No," Rangiku said, still slurring "Horrible."

"Yer gonna have one of them hangovers tomorrow somethin' terrible."

"Shuddup."

Gin led her inside his room and deposited her in his bathroom. One of the better perks of being a lieutenant, even a higher-ranking officer, was having a private bathroom. Though Gin was not sure he would want to use his again anytime soon after Rangiku was done with it that night.

He let out a soft sigh and braided back her hair. He was glad she did, a few minutes later she retched in the toilet, and Gin dampened a cloth with warm water and poured her a glass of cold water.

When she was done, Gin knelt by her. "Here, rinse yer mouth out," he said, and waited until she had done so. Then he wiped her face with the cloth. He kept his hands as gentle as possible. He hated seeing Rangiku feeling so horribly, even if it was her fault. Gin would save the tongue-lashing for when she felt better. "Think ya can manage a toothbrush?"

It took Rangiku quite awhile, but eventually her teeth were brushed. Gin made her up a bed of several stretched out towels, a pillow, and a blanket. It would not be comfortable, but he doubted Rangiku could tell the difference. The make-shift bed was two feet from the toilet, and it was washable. Rangiku laid down and began snoring almost immediately.

Gin snorted. She sounded like a cross between a frog and a jackhammer. It was going to be a long night, but for now, he was amused. He just hoped Rangiku did not make a mess of his bathroom. He hoped he could sleep at least a little bit; he had to work in the morning.

* * *

I want a Gin to take care of me....


	53. Rivalry

Well, I think my laptop's keyboard may have officially died. We'll see tomorrow when I try it out again. However, thanks to a good friend of mine, I can still use it! My "r" key is now located where my capslock button is, and the real 'r' key doesn't do anything now. Which is good, because before, the 'r' key decided to pretend it was always pressed, and made typing a l m o s t impossible for awhile. On another note, the weird guy keeps calling me and now he left a voicemail asking me to do something this weekend. I dunno what to tell him, and I'm so chicken. I may just text him and tell him I'm getting back together with my ex or something. He doesn't have to know it's not true.... Better than saying "you're too weird to go out with" right? Blah, I hate dealing with this stuff.

**Thanks** to: blackteaplease, Akane Higabana, Beautiful Nightmare07, Blueberry Absinth, and Sonozaki-sama

* * *

**53. Rivalry**

He had not thought much of it when a guy would stop to flirt with Rangiku. Gin barely glanced a guy's way when one would try day after day to get Rangiku's attention. But now there was a man, a younger man at that, who had gained Rangiku's attention. She had even allowed him into her circle of drinking friends.

Gin was not entirely sure how oblivious Rangiku was of Hisagi Shuuhei's attentions, but he did not like it at all. In fact, he flat out avoided Hisagi, because he was not sure he could be his usual mischievous self in front of him. Not when he made Gin feel so murderous.

But how to keep Rangiku away from Hisagi? He knew the other man did not like him in the least, which kept things difficult. Then again, Gin had always liked challenges.

Gin, however, did not like the new challenge that presented itself to him when he walked into Rangiku's favorite day haunt, a café modeled after those in the human world. Hisagi was making her laugh. He stared at Rangiku and waited for her to notice him.

She did not. Instead, she threw back her head with a loud peal of laughter at something _he_ said.

"Wha's so funny?" Gin said, snapping his jester's mask into place.

"Oh, Gin. What're you doing here?"

"Ya forgot ya told me ta come?"

"Did I? Was that today?" Rangiku said and scratched her head. "I guess I forgot when Shuuhei-kun started telling me the story."

"Tha's not very nice."

"Sorry, I didn't know she was meeting an old friend here," Hisagi said.

Gin was positive he put just a tiny bit more emphasis on "friend." "Yeah, so why doncha go on yer merry way so we can catch up."

"Why don't we all just hang out together?" Rangiku said.

Gin smiled at Hisagi, opening his eyes slightly. From Rangiku's angle, he probably looked as normal as he ever did. From Hisagi's angle, however, he knew he looked a little nightmarish.

Unfortunately for Gin, it turned out Hisagi had a spine. "Yeah, sure, why not?"

"Nah, I don' like that idea. Can't be tellin' all my secrets to strangers," Gin said.

"Aw, but Hisagi's a good friend of mine," Rangiku said.

"But not mine."

"Someone has issues," Hisagi said, Gin was certain he was not supposed to hear. He had unusually good ears that he put to good use eavesdropping quite often.

"Yare, yare, tha's not very nice of ya ta say at all," Gin said. He could feel his smiling grimace grow. He would not be nasty, or else Rangiku would get angry with him. "I don' appreciate it. All I wanna do is talk to my favorite girl fer awhile, an' here you're sayin' not so nice things bout me. Tha' ain't nice at all."

Five minutes later, Rangiku chased both men out of the café, slamming the door shut after them. Gin stared at the closed door for a long while. He had been sure Rangiku would only throw Hisagi out. This was not good at all.

* * *

More Gin for us all, AND a little angst. Weeee.


	54. Separation

I am continuing to use my capslock as my 'r' key. The weird part is that it hasn't affected my writing all that much. My typing HAS slowed a bit, but drabbles are still coming. I love getting ahead on these, it's such a nice thing not to have to worry about rushing out a drabble late at night after work and such! Also, the weird guy? I told him I didn't want to date anyone right now, so now he still wants to hang out with me, doing the same stuff, but as friends. Ugh. I guess I should be happy that I have guys interested in me though, given how little I date. Haha.

**Thanks** to: Blueberry Absinth, Akane Higabana, Beautiful Nightmare07, Solar Kitty, blackteaplease, Sonozaki-sama, and Renji's Girll. You guys make my day. I mean, I'm getting close to 300 reviews here. You guys just floor me, hugs to all!

* * *

**54. Separation**

Rangiku decided being mad at Gin was even worse than being confused about her feelings. At least then she could call her friend if she felt like it. Now she was obligated to ignore him until he apologized, profusely.

It was lonely.

Rangiku hated being lonely.

She could not even hang out with Hisagi now, or some of their mutual friends who had sided with him after she had kicked him out of the café. That totally was not fair. It was not Rangiku's fault that the two men had started fighting. She had no idea why they had even started fighting in the first place; they had no reason to dislike each other.

For the thousandth time that afternoon, Rangiku picked up her phone and checked her messages. Three unknown numbers. Just the usual fans. No Gin, no Hisagi begging forgiveness. No Gin chuckling with mirth over one of his devious stories, or making her skin tingle with his fingertips, or even just listening to her with a patience no one else had for her long stories.

She missed him. "Just call me already, you idiot," Rangiku told her phone.

* * *

Work meeting tomorrow guess I should shower and try to sleep.


	55. Everything for You

Posting a few hours earlier than usual as I am hugely tired and want to try to go to bed early for once. Had my first official bar shift, I think it went pretty well. I still have a lot to learn, but mostly it's stuff I can really only gain with just practice being behind the bar, y'know?

**Thanks** to: MissTeak, Blueberry Absinth, and Beautiful Nightmare07

* * *

**55. Everything for You**

Gin threw away the store-bought daisies he had bought just an hour before. He paced up and down his office a few times. He had never truly apologized to anyone before. Gin cared about very few people, and he had always done his best to keep Rangiku happy with him. But now he truly needed to make the apology.

A moment later, Gin stalked out of his office at such a fast walk he startled several shinigami in squad five. They dodged out of their temperamental lieutenant's way, slapping up salutes as quickly as the could. He barely noticed, nor did he stop to pester any of his subordinates.

Gin made it to a garden near the outskirts of his squad. It was half overgrown, not yet having Aizen's eye descend upon it. It was perfect for Gin's needs, though. As much as Rangiku loved flowers, the wild beauties had always captured her heart. He gathered orange daylilies and queen anne's lace, black-eyed susans and purple asters, coneflowers and even a small sunflower or two.

The bouquet was somewhat chaotic, it had none of the artistry that bought arrangements held. Gin did not know how flowers were supposed to go together, he simply picked the prettiest flowers and tied them together with a ribbon.

He knocked on Rangiku's door minutes later before he lost courage and threw that bouquet away as well. Or rather, before the flowers wilted. Gin lost courage at nothing, even if he had to repeat that to himself several times.

Rangiku opened the door after several minutes. Although it was well into the afternoon, she was still dressed in a purple-pink satin slip. Her hair was tangled and she had circles under her eyes. She had been in bed. Her eyes widened when she saw him and she started to shut the door.

"Hey, wait," Gin said. "Please. Look, I gotcha flowers."

"I look horrible," Rangiku said, continuing to shut the door.

Gin stopped the door with his foot and slid in, making sure the flowers came to no harm. "Yer gorgeous. Let me apologize."

Rangiku crossed her arms and glared, but she was looking at the flowers.

Gin took Rangiku's silence as an okay. "I'm sorry I embarrassed ya in front o' everyone at th' café and got into a fight over stupid stuff wi' yer friend." He paused. "Mostly, I'm sorry yer mad at me. I'd take all them things I said back if I could, ta make ya happy again. Can' stand ya bein' mad at me. I miss ya."

"Those are really mismatched flowers."

"Wildflowers ain't supposed ta match," Gin said. "Picked 'em myself."

Rangiku took them and found a vase. After the vase was filled with water and flowers, she put it on her coffee table, the place of flower honor. "I guess maybe I'll forgive you a little."

"A lil'?"

Rangiku nodded and threw herself at Gin, hugging him tightly. "You're a guy, you can't help being stupid."

Gin kept him mouth shut and wrapped his arms around her. It was too rare an occurrence these days for him to ruin by any snide comment of his.

* * *

What'd you think?


	56. Slow Down

Ate too much today, feel kinda sick, ugh. Another early morning, to bed I go.

**Thanks **to: blackteaplease, MissTeak, Sort of Ambiguous, Blueberry Absinth, LilyGirl101, Beautiful Nightmare07, and Care Bear on Fire. leftover easter candy for all!

* * *

**56. Slow Down**

Gin was exceptionally pleased at how well his apology had gone over. Only a day after the apology, Rangiku had come bounding into his room to tell him a funny story she had heard. He did not entirely understand why she was his girl again, but simply accepted it. He worried if he did start to analyze it, as he was wont to do, he would probably make it all fall to pieces. Gin was much better at breaking things than keeping them nice. Perhaps that was why he devoted much more time in keeping his relationship with Rangiku together than he did with anything else. That way, maybe, just maybe, he could hold onto Rangiku, if he gave it everything he could.

"Gin," Rangiku said. "You're not listening to me."

"Course I am."

"Then what did I say?"

Gin paused. What had she been talking about? "Yumichika discoverin' glitter."

"That was ten minutes ago," Rangiku said and rolled her eyes. "Where were you?"

"Right here, 'couse."

"But your mind wasn't."

"Nothin' important."

"Then why weren't you listening to me? I'm important, right?"

"Yer the most important," Gin said.

"I know. Now pick an ice cream flavor. Oh, no, I know, let me pick it for you!"

"Yer not pickin' fer me," he said. Rangiku loved to try new flavors and combinations of things. Some of them were disgusting, yet Rangiku still loved her creations. "Dark chocolate, wi' coconut."

"You get that every time."

"I like it."

"Fine, but you're paying."

Gin did not point out he paid every time. It did not bother him, though. He enjoyed being able to do so, and his rank of lieutenant gave him the excuse to do so. "Sure, sure. What're you gettin'?"

"Hmm…. Green tea and olive ice creams with cherry in the green tea and white chocolate and lemon drops in the olive. Oh, and sprinkles all over."

Gin had never heard of a worse combination. "You an' sprinkles." There was no way he was going to even try a bite of Rangiku's cone, no matter what she said.

A few minutes later, they were in a park, and even Rangiku had to admit the olive combination could have been better thought out. She did, however, adore the green tea scoop. "You have to try it, Gin. It's so yummy."

"I bet anything'd be good after that olive thing."

"It wasn't that bad."

"Ya spit it out. Ya don' spit nothin' out, never."

"Please?"

"Maybe," Gin said and worked on his cone, most of it still remaining. He licked it slowly, just barely stopping the ice cream from dripping down his hand. Rangiku was almost halfway done already.

Ice cream had never been something that had captured Gin's interest. He thought it was good, but it was not something he cared enough for to go out of his way to have. That was something he would never tell Rangiku. He enjoyed watching her enjoy the treat, eating with such gusto she got brain-freezes. Gin loved getting ice cream, though, because Rangiku enjoyed it so much, and he loved being there with her.

"It's almost gone, Gin. You have to try it!"

"Aight, aight, I'll try it."

Rangiku hurried over to hand him the cone, but in her excitement, the cone went sailing. They watched it land in the grass.

For a moment, Gin thought she might cry. "Don' worry, ya can have the rest of mine."

"But now you can't try it."

"Sure I can," Gin said. For a moment, he wondered what had possessed his mouth. Then, he wondered what was possessing his body. He tilted Rangiku's chin up with one hand and gently kissed the corner of her mouth, which had a streak of the green stuff. "S'not bad."

"Told you." Rangiku's voice was whisper soft in Gin's ear.

His lips were only a fingerbreadth from her skin. His heartbeat thudded in his ears, until it was all he could hear, but instead of the beating speeding up, it seemed to slow down until each beat lasted minutes.

Gin shifted just a bit to the left. Softly, he pressed his lips down. Immediately, Rangiku's lips pressed back and her arm wrapped around his waist, her other hand at his neck, drawing him nearer.

The second ice cream cone fell, but neither noticed, ice cream all but forgotten.

* * *

I think a lot of you have been waiting for this one


	57. Lesson

Haha, I'm tired of working. I only have the rest of my life spent working to go... blah! I'm one of those people who has a million hobbies too, some I'm really never lacking in something to do. Rather, I have a huge list of stuff to do all the time.

**Thanks** to: MissTeak, Blueberry Absinth, blackteaplease, Akane Higabana, Sort of Ambiguous, Beautiful Nightmare07, LilyGirl101, and Care Bear on Fire. You guys are all pretty regular anymore, you guys really brighten my days! I always look forward to hearing from you guys =)

**

* * *

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**57. Lesson**

"Hey cap'n," Gin said, lounging on the floor while Aizen worked on paperwork for the squad. "What kinda things does a guy do for one of them anniversaries wi' a girl?"

"Why do you want to know?"

Gin realized he was treading in water he did not want to be in. Normally, Aizen simply told him the best advice. It was when Aizen evaded answering by asking questions he had to worry. "Jus' wonderin'."

"Does this have anything to do with that girl you spend time with?"

Gin shrugged. He did not like feeling like the helpless one, but now Aizen had his reins firmly in hand.

"Remember, Gin, you cannot get too attached to anyone in the seireitei. We will be leaving them behind. You must keep that in mind, always."

"Yeah, yeah. I ain't gonna do nothin' to come in between yer plan, promise."

Aizen nodded. "I would hate to lose my most loyal and important comrade. Keep our goals in mind. Immortality will be yours."

Gin nodded. He would say no more of Rangiku to Aizen. In fact, he would make it seem like he was pulling away from her. Especially now that Aizen had begun asking questions. That was not good at all.

* * *

Stupid Aizen...


	58. Challenged

Bad mood, not much to say.

**Thanks** to: Blueberry Absinth, blackteaplease, LilyGirl101, Sort of Ambiguous, Care Bear on Fire (to answer your question about the order of thanks... it goes in the order of when people reviewed, starting with the most recent, ending with the last received review for the previous chapter), and Akane Higabana

**58. Challenged**

Rangiku sprawled across Gin's bed while he worked. Now that she knew he liked her as well, she spent more time with him than ever. Sometimes it meant he had to work while she entertained herself, but she did not mind. It reminded her of when they were children.

She leaned over the edge of the bed and looked beneath. Underneath it, there were what looked like games. Rangiku pulled a small wooden box out and set it on the bed.

"What do you do with this?"

Gin glanced over. "Ya try to take it apart, then ya try to put it back together."

"That's it?"

Gin turned back to his papers with a chuckle.

Rangiku opened the box and pulled out a three dimensional star. She tugged it. Nothing happened except that her hands slid off. She tried again.

Ten minutes later, Rangiku slammed the star onto Gin's desk. "It's impossible to take apart!"

"Nah."

"Is so."

Gin examined the star for a moment. Then he picked it up. The star seemed to fall apart in his hands. "Not so bad. Wanna try puttin' it back together?"

"How'd you do that?"

"Just had to push right."

Rangiku felt Gin's eyes on her as she struggled to fit the pieces together. After some time, she understood how they fit together, but no matter what she did, it all fell to pieces every time.

Eventually, Gin collected the pieces from her and put it to rights. "I've done this one before a few times."

Rangiku knew he said it to make her feel better, and it did help. She also knew, though, that Gin had taken apart the star and put it back together again with the same speed the first time he had seen it. He was like that with all of his puzzles, it infuriated her because she struggled with them so much, yet she was fascinated that he could do the puzzles so well.

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I have the puzzle Rangiku tried. It's a pain in the butt.


	59. Exhaustion

Well, I'm in a hotle room because.. uhhh.... well, my mother felt like getting one because she had a free hotel stay to use up before Monday. I'm very bored. So I'm gonna try to write up a few drabbles as well.

**Thanks** to: Blueberry Absinth, Akane Higabana, Beautiful Nightmare07, and Care Bear on Fire

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**59. Exhaustion**

Gin slipped into her room without knocking. Rangiku was about to yell at him; he tended to sneak up on her, walking so quietly she never knew he was there until she had jumped out of her skin and screamed.

Today, though, she heard the door open and his footsteps and he came inside. He came and laid down on Rangiku's couch, propping his head up on her thigh. "Think they'll look fer me here?"

"Who?"

"My squad. Keep wantin' me ta do more an' more work."

"That's what you get for being captain," Rangiku said, but she ran her fingers through his hair.

Gin closed his eyes, leaning into her hand. "Feels nice."

"I still don't know why you wanted to be captain. You hate working."

"Won' have to work much more at it. Jus' gotta get stuff set up. That's the pain. Didn' even get lunch t'day."

"I have leftover Chinese if you want."

Gin nodded, and Rangiku made him the food. Gin chose to become a fixture of the couch, sitting up only when Rangiku set the food on his lap. He polished off every bit of the take-out Rangiku had in minutes.

Then he laid back down, using Rangiku's lap as his pillow. "I've never seen you so sleepy-looking."

"Didn' sleep las' night, got two hours sleep 'fore that."

"I'm never, ever going to be a captain."

"Yer gonna be a lieutenant though."

"Totally! Best of both worlds. The perks of being awesome, while getting everyone else to do my work for me."

"Ya make everyone do yer work fer ya now anyway."

"So?"

"So… I dunno."

Rangiku looked down at Gin and traced one of the circles under his eyes gently. Then she kissed him lightly. "You need to sleep."

"Rather see you."

"Then we'll just both have to go to bed," Rangiku said and stood up. "Come on." She offered him a hand up when he made no move.

"Whatcha mean?"

"You'll just have to sleep in my bed. And no funny business."

"Ha. Migh' just be too tired fer that anyway," Gin said and took Rangiku's hand, letting her help pull him up.

He trudged after her to her bedroom and laid, pulling Rangiku close to him. He gave her a single chaste kiss. She stroked his hair until his breathing evened, only a few minutes later. She read for awhile longer, half-watching Gin. He looked so much more innocent when he slept. Eventually, Rangiku turned off the light and snuggled beside Gin.

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Sleepy Gin just seems so adorable to me for some reason.


	60. Accuracy

Spent the day shopping and spent too much money. It was awesome ^___^ I do want to return something, but I'm going to do it at another store. I was mostly just going for a price check, but I forgot that a co-worker of mine also works at the phone place. So, she was there, and so she rang stuff up instead of the guy who'd give me more of a discount (and whom I'd be able to say no to muuuuch more easily.) But otherwise, I'm happy about the stuff I got, hehe. Even some stuff for Europe. Now I'm starting to go through my to-do list. It's long... But I am for sure going to have a netbook when I go to Europe, so I may be able to occasionally give you guys some drabbles while I'm away.

**Thanks** to: MissTeak, Akane Higabana **(congrats on being reviewer 300!!),** Blueberry Absinth, blackteaplease, Beautiful Nightmare07, Care Bear on Fire, and Sort of Ambiguous. roses for all! (or daisies, if you prefer, and fake flowers if you're allergic!)

**Go check out _Not Meant to be Together_ by Akane Higabana!!!** If you look above, she's one of the regular readers of this story, and she has her own set of RanxGin drabbles. Go read it!

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**60. Accuracy**

"You know what? I'm going to teach you how to cook."

"Yer gonna do what now?" Gin said. Already, the idea did not sound like a good one.

"You heard me. You're always going out to eat. You should at least be able to make one meal. It'll be fun, promise."

"An' if I don' wanna learn?"

"Of course you do. Now let's go shopping for dinner."

Rangiku tugged at his hand. Gin knew he had no choice in the matter, he was going to have a cooking lesson whether he liked it or not. If it had been anyone else, he could have refused, but then no one else would ever have asked, or rather, demanded. Sometimes, it made him a little mad to know the kind of power Rangiku could hold over him.

As Rangiku began handing Gin ingredients to hold, he could not help but note that they were going to be making chicken curry, a dish Rangiku particularly enjoyed while Gin himself merely thought it was good though nothing extraordinary. Once he mastered the dish, he knew Rangiku would want him to cook it for her quite often.

After Gin paid for the items, they made their way to Gin's new set of rooms. Rangiku loved spending time there. As a captain, Gin's room were exceptionally nice and full of new comfortable furniture. Sometimes Gin wondered if she liked him or his couch more.

"Okay, now first there's a lot of stuff to cut up. That's the hardest part really, getting everything out and ready to throw in. It's a fast curry, so once it starts cooking, you really only have a couple of minutes to get the new ingredients in." Rangiku told him and handed over the knife.

"Now, I know the recipe has exact measurements, but when you're cooking, it's more about the feel of it, you know?" Rangiku began adding spices without measuring. "They're a good guideline, I guess, but usually it just makes really boring food that way. You can even add stuff to make it more interesting. Everything is good in curry."

"Since I'm jus' learnin though, let's leave them things out. Get the basics down first." Sometimes, Rangiku added strange things that no one else would ever want to eat. The rest of the time, Gin had to admit she was a good cook. Or at least, he had survived her cooking during their rukongai days.

"I guess we'll keep it simple, since it's a lesson and all," Rangiku said.

"Tha's a lotta spice yer addin' there," Gin said. He knew one could be quite liberal with spices when using a recipe, but the recipe had called for half a teaspoon of the yellow-orange tumeric, and Rangiku had to have added over a tablespoon.

"Who's the cook here?"

"I'm supposed to be."

"Well, I've made this a lot more than you," Rangiku said, but as Gin stirred the spices into the mixture, her eyes widened. The dish had become a brilliant shade of yellow. Gin knew it should not have looked that alarmingly bright. "It should be fine. Just because it's yellow doesn't mean anything."

"Whatever ya say, Ran-chan." He had to struggle not to widen his usual smirk. If Rangiku had ruined their dinner while she tried to teach him how to cook, he was afraid she would hit him if he laughed too much.

A short while later, and much adding and mixing of thing by Rangiku, the mixture was somewhat less yellow and more of a dingy orange. Gin was no less reassured, however. He was fairly certain the orange had come from adding a great deal of hot red pepper paste.

Rangiku served up too plates of the stuff. Gin paused. Rangiku was not digging in; instead, she was watching him, waiting for him to take the first bite. That was the tactic Gin was going to use. He lifted a bite to his mouth and did not even have time to chew before his mouth was on fire from something putrid tasting. He spat the stuff out onto his plate and guzzled tea that was still scalding enough it only made things worse.

Rangiku ran and got him a glass of cold water which Gin gulped down, holding an ice cube against his tongue to keep some of the stinging heat at bay. By the time Gin had stopped thinking solely about making his mouth scream a little less, the vile food was gone and a heap of innocent grilled cheese sandwiches adorned a plate. "They have no spice, I promise."

"My mouth hurts."

"I'm sorry…"

"I know," Gin said. "No more cooking lessons."

"Never."

For a moment, Gin thought Rangiku might cry. "C'mere." He pulled her to him and kiss the top of her head. "Yer a good cook. S'all my fault." He ate some of a grilled cheese sandwich. "It's good grilled cheese. Real good."

"You sure?"

"Yeah. 'Sides, remember ya tried ta teach me ta cook when we was kids," Gin said. "I always messed everything up. S'why you did all the cookin'. Ya made stuff taste good. I just ain't a cook."

"They are good sandwiches."

Gin kissed the top of her head again. "Course they are. Ya made 'em and I didn' do nothin' but eat 'em."

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You know, I bet Gin knows how to cook. Or at least, he COULD learn how to cook. But if Rangiku will cook for him.....


	61. Out of Time

I am sleepy, sleepy. It's all my own fault as I haven't gone to bed yet.

**Thanks** to: Blueberry Absinth, MissTeak, Akane Higabana, blackteaplease, Renji's Girll, CrossroadsofLife, Sonozaki-sama, Beautiful Nightmare07, and Care Bear on Fire. Wow, that was a lot of reviews, it was totally awesome! ^___^ So, a lot of you got to be in a curry mood after last chapter, sooooo you all get homemade curry if you like!

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**61. Out of Time**

Most of the time, Gin manipulated events to go in his favor. There was one thing he could not manipulate, and that was time. Aizen's time. Events were falling into place bit by bit and with each piece, time jutted forward in violent strokes. He grew busier with each piece as well. He was spending less and less time with Rangiku.

The way he had to sneak around and play everything down around Aizen to keep his true captain content. Even so, Gin knew he would follow Aizen to the end of it all, even if it meant hurting Rangiku.

As much as he hated knowing he would eventually break her heart, he hated even more that he was running out of time with Rangiku. He could see time passing.

Each time another piece fell into place in Aizen's plan, Gin would pull away from Rangiku. The idea was to eventually wean himself off from her, and Rangiku from him. It would work, for a little while. Then he was back in Rangiku's arms.

In some ways, he was in over his head with both Aizen and Rangiku. Once more, he put it out of his mind. Instead, he went for a walk, to watch people, maybe cause a little trouble.

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It's getting sadder :(


	62. Luck

I wrote drabble 70 today. I have to say, it was a very difficult one to write. Ugh. Hopefully it turned out well though. I was going to do at least two today, but 70 just took waaay too long. So now I have to go to bed so I can be up nice and early to go to the bar to work. Ugh. Also, my laptop is dying in the most amazing ways now. It's a bit comical if it wasn't so icky. Thank goodness I have the netbook now. It's making life much easier.

Anyone remember Ikkaku's Luck-luck dance? I thought of that when I wrote this, haha.

**Thanks** to: Care Bear on Fire, Blueberry Absinth, Akane Higabana, Beautiful Nightmare07, Sonozaki-sama, Solar Kitty, and LilyGirl101.

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**62. Luck**

Gin slipped into Rangiku's room, keeping his steps quiet. He held his reiatsu close and tight about him, making him impossible to detect. He delighted in making Rangiku scream when he snuck up on her. The consequence was that he had had to hone his slinking skills. Which just meant he was able to cause trouble much more easily.

He enjoyed that aspect quite a bit.

The plan for the day was quite simple. He was going to whisper "boo" in her ear. It was not fancy, but it tended to have a wonderful effect.

Gin stopped in his tracks. He knew he was staring, but there was not any helping it. This was a sight he had not seen in quite awhile. In fact, the last time he had seen this had been an accident.

The learning curve Gin possessed was steep. He whirled around and cleared his throat before Rangiku murdered him. He was glad to have a nearly photographic memory. Rangiku was changing out of her uniform.

Her hair was pinned up and her shirt had been strewn across the bed. He had seen the smooth skin of her back, and the bare curve of one luscious breast. She had been about to remove her pants. Gin would have loved to watch. He loved having Rangiku's respect and like even more.

"Gin, how many times have I told you to knock?" Rangiku said.

"A million times."

"Exactly."

"Sorry."

"Good," Rangiku said. She paused. "So, did you like what you saw?"

"Yeah."

"You can turn around."

Gin turned, and nearly spun away again. Rangiku had not pulled her shirt back on. Gin could not help but stare. "Yer gorgeous. Like a goddess."

"I know," Rangiku said. Then she laughed. "I can see your eyes."

"The better to see more."

Rangiku came closer, and Gin wondered for a moment if he could even move. Then all his thoughts were erased. There was only Rangiku.

He kissed her lightly, and when she pressed close, he parted her lips as his arms made their way across that rose-petal skin. His hands felt rough in comparison, and he nearly pulled away. Rangiku kept him close, her fingers snaking through his hair, fingertips thrilling his neck.

This was absolutely the best plan for mischief Gin had ever had.

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Soooo, anyway else think that Gin is very, very happy today?


	63. Impressions

Oh man, I'm getting so nervous about my trip that I'm making myself a littl sick feeling. Thank goodness for antacids! Looking forward to some sleep... I have a couple of verrry busy days, followed by a very busy trip. Eep. I'm going to be exhausted by the time I'm back!

**Thanks** to: MissTeak, blackteaplease, Blueberry Absinth, Akane Higabana, Red Phyire, Solar Kitty, LilyGirl101, gaarasracoon, Sonozaki-sama, Care Bear on Fire,

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****63. Impressions**

A thrilling kiss led into a frenzy of mad passion that left Gin's mind breathless. He was disoriented and a little woozy. His hands traveled to places he dreamed of, across one sensuous curve to another. He trailed kisses along Rangiku's jaw, down her neck.

Rangiku tore Gin's shirt away. He felt pale beside her golden glory, but when she pressed a hand against his stomach, tracing long-hardened abs, it reminded him of gold and silver.

Gin pulled back. "Do gold an' silver go t'gether?"

Rangiku blinked, her eyes looking a bit misted with passion she had been jarred out of too abruptly. "What are you talking about?"

"Do gold and silver go t'gether?"

"What's it matter?"

"Course."

"I dunno, I don't care."

Gin pressed his hand against the flat planes of Rangiku's stomach. "Silver an' gol' right there."

"Then silver and gold are perfect," Rangiku said. "You think weird things."

Gin kissed Rangiku deeply. Sometimes he still could not believe Rangiku was his. Rangiku pulled him towards her bed, loosening the tie on his pants as she went. Gin's hands found her waist, and trailed down. Rangiku's hands stopped, pressing against him.

Tonight, she was his everything, all that existed, all that could possibly matter.

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XD A kind of continuation from the last drabble .


	64. Cold Embrace

Soo much to do, sooo little time. And so many drabbles to write! Ack. As a reminder, tomorrow may be my last drabble until May 1st, as I will be in Europe with extremely limited net and even more limited time. I apologize for the break in the drabbles (I am very pleased that I have written and posted 64 in a row so far, which is amaaazing for me.) Ireland on Wednesday!! Or, well, Thursday, because of time changes and flight times and such.

**Thanks** to: MissTeak, blackteaplease, Blueberry Absinth, Akane Higabana, Beautiful Nightmare07, Care Bear on Fire, and LilyGirl101. You guys are so regular and amazing, I love you guys for being nice enough to review nearly every day, thanks so much!!

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**64. Cold Embrace**

Rangiku looked outside. The world was an icy wonderland. Sunlight sparkled rainbow yellow across smooth white expanses and long icicles glinted blue and white in mottled edges. When she looked through a window, where it was toasty warm inside, it was a winter fairyland. The trouble was, Rangiku was outside on patrol.

The wind was nasty and bitter. A gust flared up and slide between her scarf and coat, hurling tiny white crystals at her neck. The wind was fierce enough the tiny pellets stung like small barbs just before they burst into tiny white fires of frigid cold.

Rangiku's boots may have been weatherproof, but there was only so much they could do against a constant onslaught of cold white. Fingers had long ago gone numb inside gloves that were not nearly as thick as she would like, but thick gloves made it hard to handle a zanpakuto, which was even worse, but only if she met up with a hollow.

Rocking on her toes helped a tiny bit, but mostly she watched and listened for the next person to come to take her watch. All she wanted to do was curl up under a mountain of blankets until summertime.

Eventually, she saw her replacement, she hurried towards her room as fast as her stiff, cold feet would let her. Little ice pellets blew into her face even as it blew her hair away from her, halo of small warmth that it was.

By the time Rangiku turned her key in the door, she felt stripped and frigid. She opened the door and was hit by a blast of heat, a burst of light, and the waft of chocolate.

"Close th' door," Gin said. "Get outta yer things, I got hot chocolate fer ya."

Rangiku was a bit hesitant to unwrap herself. Each layer brought a new chill to her. Finally, the last layer lay on Rangiku's floor. Gin came up to her from behind and wrapped his arms close around her, hot cocoa in one hand.

She leaned back, trying to steal as much of his warmth as she could marveling that he did not pull away despite how cold she was. Rangiku took the hot cocoa and took a sip. It was just short of scalding and sent a warm, billowing feeling throughout her stomach. Rangiku could taste the butterscotch schnapps now.

Sometimes Gin made her crazy, but right now she knew he was perfect, the one for her. He led her to the couch and covered her with a pile of blankets, curling up beside her so that they were cocooned in a tight bundle of warmth. Rangiku laid her head on Gin's shoulder and murmured a thank you to him as he warmed her up.

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More fluff 3


	65. Frost

Well, as this shows, I'm officially back! I had such limited access to the net while I was away it was pointless to even try to update this at all. I finally got home late last night, but I was just too tired to update. I had a rum and coke and went to bed. Still tired, but I'll get used to it soon enough! Apart from a volcano exploding and really messing flight stuff up for awhile, Dublin, London, and Paris were just fabulous. London was my favorite place, hands down. I'd love to live there.

**Thanks** to: MissTeak, Wette Lilie, Blackteaplease, Beautiful Nightmare07, Blueberry Absinth, Care bear on Fire, gaasrasracoon, Renji's Girll, PunkRockHolly, Claudia, Solar Kitty, Mihara-chan, and Blitch. And thanks for the good trip wishes and what not as well =)

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**65. Frost**

Gin opened one eye to a tiny slit and glanced at his phone. Its alarm was ringing at the god awful time of five in the morning. Apart from the tiny glow of his phone, he was surrounded by pitch black cold.

Or rather, that was what existed outside of his warm blanket cocoon. His pillow, in particular, was wonderfully warm and soft. She had the two softest pillows of all that she let him use as much as he wanted.

Rangiku's alarm had probably never even been set, which meant that she was going to be in bed, asleep, for quite some time; his alarm had hardly made her stir. Gin snuggled closer to her, wrapping his arms around her.

She shifted so that her head rested on Gin's shoulder. Feather soft hair tickled his arm; he ran his fingers through it a few times. He glanced at the window. It was covered in a cloud of frost twining and twisting across the glass. Another glance at his phone reminded him it would be even colder outside right now.

He snuggled back down within the blankets, shutting his phone off. He could work any time. Staying here with Rangiku, that was something he would rather do any day.

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Just a sweet one =)


	66. A Moment in Time

Blah, have work tomorrow, not feeling great today. Probably because I was stupid and ate ice cream. Lactose-intolerance sucks haha.

**Thanks** to: LilyGirl101, Renji's Girll, Solar Kitty, blackteaplease, gaasrasracoon, PunkRockHolly, Beautiful Nightmare07, Sonozaki-sama, and Care Bear on Fire (the rum n' coke was quite tasty, by the way.)

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**66. A Moment in Time**

Rangiku lay sprawled across a couch, her arm shielding her eyes from any light in the dim room. With every shift she groaned and at every sound she winced. Gin leaned against the doorway and sighed softly. Rangiku would drink and drink, and stumble back to her room, or Gin's. Whichever was closer, he supposed. Then she was gone for the rest of the day, victim to her hangovers. She just never learned.

"Ya know—"

"Shh," Rangiku said. "My head is dying, it's being trampled by zebras and Chihuahuas."

"Chihuahuas ain't heavy enough ta trample anythin'."

"Shhh."

"Fine, I'm whisperin' fer now," Gin said, voice soft and low. "But if ya'd stop drinkin' all them sake bottles ya wouldn' hafta lie here all miserable an' I could talk like a normal person."

"Not you too."

"Someone else's agreein' wi' me?"

"Nanao-chan is such a harpy, always going on and on about how drinking and partying is so bad, how I need to work harder, blah, blah, blah."

"Gotta say, I migh' even work harder than ya."

"I work plenty."

Gin bit back most of his laughter. "Whateva ya say. Still, yer always so miserable after ya drink. Why don' ya lay off."

"No, I like going out," Rangiku said, sitting up slowly, cradling her head on her knees once she made it up. "And you can't tell me not to."

Gin ran a hand through his hair. "I ain't tellin' ya not ta have a good time, but maybe ya shouldn' drink so much."

"Maybe someone should take that stick out of his ass."

Gin paused. He had not been expecting that. "Now, now, Ran-chan, ya know tha' ain't true. I ain't never put a stick up there. That don' sound like fun at all."

"Could've fooled me. Seems to me you've got a great big on up there."

"Y'know, Ran-chan," Gin said. "I love ya an' all, but I think yer still drunk, an' bein' ridiculous. Think I'm jus' gonna leave fer now."

Rangiku sat up straight. "Well, you know what? I think you should just go to hell. Don't bother coming back, ever, you arrogant son of a stuck-up bitch!"

Gin's heart went still for a long moment. He could not breathe, his mind was blank, and a numb feeling spread over him. He turned and made his way to the door as fast as he could get the next foot in front of him. The only thing that mattered was getting out of there as fast as he could.

Until he heard the hiccupping belch of a moan from Rangiku that had become unfortunately familiar to him after some nights of her worst drinking. He got the bucket there just in time.

"Thank you," Rangiku said a few minutes later.

Gin said nothing and began getting Rangiku and the bucket cleaned up.

He brought Rangiku a glass of water, intent on leaving again. Rangiku caught his wrist, pulling him towards her until he sat down on the couch. She laid down and put her head on his lap. Within minutes she was asleep again. For a moment, Gin had been afraid she had been those words. He would not admit to himself he had thought it was all in pieces for longer than that, because then he might have to ask why he thought that. The answer, that he did not deserve her because he had already betrayed her was something he could not yet face.

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I have mixed feelings about this one.


	67. Dangerous Territory

Oh boy. I had ONE drink, and now I'm falling asleep in my chair. Then again, it's been a very long day for me. hmmm.. maybe that'll be my excuse, a long day. Mostly, I'm just a light-weight. Oh well.

**Thanks** to: PunkRockHolly, cy-grl, blackteaplease, Blueberry Absinth, Solar Kitty, khorik, LilyGirl101, and gaasrasracoon. Roses for all!

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**67. Dangerous Territory**

When Gin was with Rangiku, he could let all his troubles disappear. The problem was, Gin was a captain; he had duties to perform every day. Rangiku had things she did as well; she was a third seat, and Gin suspected she would be named lieutenant shortly.

They would have even less time together then. Gin supposed that would be better for the appearance he kept up with Aizen. Thanks to Aizen, he had been careful for quite some time. He wished he could just let all of it lay forgotten, but the consequences might scare even him. Instead, he kept a somewhat casual relationship with Rangiku.

Gin looked around. He was deep in a forest. He had taken an assignment quite a ways off. He had wandered off from Rangiku one day and heard about it so he kept walking. He picked a fiddle head and toyed with it. Gin was well aware how much his bad habit hurt Ranigku. So he kept doing it. He had to do something to keep her at a distance.

Otherwise, he had no idea how he would leave her behind. He had no choice now, he would be going with Aizen. He had to make sure that Aizen did not kill Rangiku though, as Aizen planned to do with Momo. Gin did not particularly care for the girl, but he knew Aizen was truly a cruel man.

Sometimes, it took Gin a moment to remember that he too was a cruel man. He toyed with and used people without regret, and he continued seeing Rangiku knowing how much he would eventually hurt her. Gin slept easily at night, knowing he would betray all of soul society. He did wicked, terrible things, yet for those things he felt no remorse. He would miss Rangiku though.

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Oh man do I ever have the sleepies.


	68. Boundaries

I feel sad today. No idea why.

**Thanks** to: Solar Kitty, PunkRockHolly, Blueberry Absinth, blackteaplease, Beautiful Nightmare07, and LilyGirl101

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****68. Boundaries**

Gin stood in a bookstore, shadowed by a bookshelf. Despite his hair, he knew he would not be noticed by anyone. He had made himself a master of disappearing long ago. Even so, he held his breath when Rangiku passed near him. She never glanced in his direction. Instead, she walked into a café.

She was not meant to notice him, but even so he could not help but wince just a bit. Something in him kept him hoping she would somehow know he was there despite everything.

A moment later, he saw Rangiku exit a café door and sit at a black metal table. She had a cup of tea in front of her, and she was watching the street. Gin sighed. She was coming to meet with him for lunch, she had invited him a few days before. He wanted to sit down with her and laugh with her, see her smile and watch her eyes light up.

He watched as her eyes became more anxious, scanning the people on the street one by one, searching. It was all a part of the game he played to keep her in his life. Then came the moment he hated the most. The little, quiet sigh with a slight lift of her shoulders. Her head bowed down and she sipped at her tea.

She would no longer search for his face in the crowd now. This was the moment she knew Gin was not going to show up. Now, she did not even ask him where he was or why he had not told her he would miss meeting her.

She accepted it as she did his perpetual wandering, as simply a part of who he was. He hated it. It was terrible that she loved him enough to put up with it all. He hated that he hurt her so much of the time. He hated being apart from her even more. He was so selfish, horribly selfish, but Rangiku was the one thing he could not stand to give up.

Eventually, he would have to. Until then, he would play this game so that he could keep Rangiku in his life without drawing Aizen's wrath onto her.

Gin watched Rangiku a few minutes longer. Then he turned and slunk down an alley. He meandered away, just putting one foot in front of the other. He still watched people, but today he did not cause trouble, or draw inferences from them. They were merely people, something that barely distracted his mind. When he stopped wandering, nearly two weeks had passed. He almost felt sorry for his lieutenant, but then he had chosen his lieutenant because he was a capable, hard-working man who would be able to handle the extra work Gin gave him.

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Despite the sad, horribleness of this chapter, I actually really like it. Am I weird?


	69. Irregular Orbit

Still sad, blah.

**Thanks** to: Akane Higabana, Blueberry Absinth, blackteaplease, PunkRockHolly, Ayamichan34, Solar Kitty, LilyGirl101, Beautiful Nightmare07, cy-girl, Falln4DarkAngel, and Care Bear on Fire (sorry you've been sick!)

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**69. Irregular Orbit**

Rangiku watched Gin sleeping, sprawled across the bed. He shifted; he had been doing so nearly every minute since Rangiku had woken up. Gently, Rangiku played with his hair. He settled back to sleep. He always seemed to sleep better if he was near enough to Rangiku to be touching.

Sometimes, she wondered if Gin came to see her just so that he could sleep. Sometimes, he would be so tired after he had left her behind for whatever mysterious reason that he fell asleep with his head on her lap, an arm wrapped around her waist.

Those times, she loved him with all of her heart. But when he was away, it hurt. Once, he was away for so long that Rangiku began to wonder if he was going to come back. Her eyes had begun to wander, but then Gin walked back into her life and swept her off her feet. It happened every time. She always meant to end it back in the beginning when it had always left her confused and hurt.

Now, she accepted their strange relationship. She let herself look when he was gone, but no one was ever as amazing as Gin. He would return and she would hold him as close as she could for as long as she could. He always left, but he always came back.

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This one makes me want a sleepy Gin on my lap.


	70. Versus

Maaan am I tired. And I have to be up in less than six hours, ugh. Then I was a little crazy and volunteered to pull a double at work on the busiest day of the week when the weather is fabulous and there's a big fight on to attract even more people. I'm gonna die, haha.

**Thanks** to: blackteaplease, CrossroadsofLife, Blueberry Absinth, Renji's Girll, gaarasracoon, cy-grl, Beautiful Nightmare07, Care Bear on Fire, Solar Kitty (remind me tomorrow to edit 71 and to read allllll your stuff that I've missed haha! oh, and to work on ToF if I have time. ack.), and PunkRockHolly.

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**70. Versus**

It was chaos, everywhere. Rangiku was getting through it all with sake and many long naps. She woke up and stared for a moment. He had been in her dreams; the day she had first met Gin. He had changed her life, entwining her life with his forever.

"Did you sleep well, Matusumoto?"

"Captain," Rangiku said. "What are you doing in my room?"

"Idiot, the office if not your room," Histugaya said. "Since you're up, hurry up and help me with this. I'm dead tired."

"Well, Captain, you were the one who volunteered to take over all the paperwork for the fifth division."

"Oh, shut up," Hitsugaya said and shoved a handful of papers at Rangiku. "Take these to your desk and finish them."

"There are only this many left? Wasn't there a lot more?"

"Shut up and work already. Go. Go!"

Rangiku looked down at the papers silently for a long moment. "I… How long did I sleep?"

"Never mind that," Hitsugaya said and gulped down some tea. "Seeing your colleague and a junior fight like that… It probably puts you in a tight spot, doesn't it?"

"My colleague?" Rangiku asked. Hitsugaya, along with most people, had no idea the full extent of her relationship with Gin. They had always kept it quiet. Now she wondered why. "Captain, do you really think that Captain Ichimaru Gin—"

Someone burst into the room calling for them. Three lieutenants had escaped their holding cells. Abarai, Hinamori, and Kira had done the unthinkable. It seemed like everything was falling apart around Rangiku, since all the trouble started with the ryoka, but it was not just the ryoka. It was so much more, and Rangiku could not even begin to think of it all.

Rangiku followed Hitsugaya to Hinamori's holding cell. It was not unexpected, given him much Hitsugaya cared about Hinamori, however, she herself was excruciatingly curious about Kira's cell. After all, he was one of her drinking buddies.

At the cell, the guard apologized profusely, but Hitsugaya brushed it aside. He was a fair man and knew that the fault did not lay in the guard at all. "Matsumoto," he said. "You go back first. I'm going to help Hinamori."

Rangiku's heart felt like it was falling out of her chest. She knew who Hitsugaya believed he was meeting. She could not stand it, and began to head back. Then, she felt a spike in spiritual pressures. Captain level. Her own captain, and the very man she feared it would be.

Rangiku arrived in time to see the chain on the end of Hitsugaya's shikai wrap around Gin's arm.

"Shoot him, shinsou," Gin said, breath soft and dangerous, eyes open, focused on Hitsugaya.

Rangiku's captain ducked away.

"Are you sure? If you dodge it, she _will_ die," Gin said.

Rangiku moved. She heard Hitsugaya scream his friend's name. She knew exactly how powerful shinsou was, and that at this point, Gin could not stop it. She prayed the move was supposed to merely call Hitsugaya back from the fight instead of aimed at hurting Hinamori, even as her zanpakutou flew up.

"Matsumoto!" Hitsugaya cried out.

Gin was silent, his perpetual grin gone.

"I'm really sorry… I was going to head back as you instructed but I felt the spiritual pressure of Hyourinmaru, so I turned around," Rangiku said. "Please put away your sword, Captain Ichimaru." In public, that was the way they spoke anyway. So what if she emphasized the words "captain" and "Ichimaru." She was angry with him. She had every right to be. What on earth was he doing?

He watched her, saying not a word.

"If not, I will be your opponent."

Abruptly, Gin grinned and his sword retracted. He turned away from her. He advised Hitsugaya to take care of Hinamori. Rangiku watched his back. She knew absolutely that Gin was about to disappear, and he was not going to tell her where he was going or why. He never changed that way.

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*sigh* This one I hated writing because I had to look stuff up in the manga, and, well, we know where this one is leading.....


	71. Unsettling Revelations

Ugh, I meant to be in bed already, but this chapter and the next took much longer than I anticipated, but I had to have both done today--I work fifteen hours tomorrow. I'm going to die. Ugh.

**Thanks** to: Blueberry Absinth, blackteaplease, Solar Kitty, LilyGirl101, PunkRockHolly, Sonozaki-sama, Renji's Girll, and Falln4DarkAngel

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**71. Unsettling Revelations**

Rangiku was standing and worrying about everything that was going on when Hitsugaya announced that they were going to save Rukia. Part of her was glad of his decision; she knew something was very wrong with the decision. The other part of her, however, wanted to search through all of seireitei, look down every alley and hiding place in rukongai for one person.

Someone who had left. Again.

The problem was, Rangiku had her duties, and she could not leave. What she did not want to admit was that she was afraid of finding Gin.

Rangiku raced after Hitsugaya as they flew inside Central 46, the lack of security sending an unsettling ripple through her stomach.

"Ho… How is this possible?" Hitsugaya whispered. Then Rangiku saw, and she was more stunned than her captain. "What happened here?"

The central government had been destroyed. The six judges and forty wisemen lay in a bloody morgue. It was a brutal slaughterhouse, but no one had fought back.

Rangiku watched in silence as her captain fingered the blood. "The blood is dry… It even turned black and breaks into flakes. They must have been dead for at least two days."

The words were sound, there was no tremor to them, but even so, Rangiku knew Hitsugaya felt the same sick, twisted shock she felt. Even more, this meant that the orders for Kuchiki Rukia's death, the latest orders, for her to be executed in a matter of hours, did not come from Central forty-six. Her stomach lurched as she thought of who it might have come from.

A new voice said, "I thought you would be here Captain Hitsugaya."

"Kira! It can't be. Did you do this?" Hitsugaya stared up at the blond man. Izuru flew away. "After him, Matsumoto!"

"Yes, sir!" She would follow her captain's orders to the end of the earth, even if she was afraid of whom she would find when they finally caught Izuru.

Hitsugaya pulled ahead of her, and she heard bits and pieces of horrible accusations concerning the massacre of Central 46. Then Hitsugaya ordered Rangiku to stay and deal with Izuru. She did not understand why her friend was opposing her and her captain now, but she knew he had to be stopped. Why was he still running?

All at once, he stopped. "Hm? Are you done running?" She said, catching her breath.

"My mission is to keep you here, Matsumoto-san."

"'Mission'? Who gave you that mission? Gin?" Rangiku frowned and crossed her arms. It made her look intimidating and hid the tiny tremors of fear in her hands.

"There is no need to answer you."

"There is…"

"There is not," Kira said. A few words of banter more, and then, "What I meant was, there is no need to answer someone who is about to die anyway."

How did this all get twisted around so horribly? Kira unleashed wabisuke and the world became a blur. Her blade met his, and then, abruptly, it was too heavy to hold. It hit the ground with a heavy thud; wabisuke's hidden power. So Rangiku unleashed haineko and she no longer had a blade to hold; the ash was her weapon now. Gin, what on earth do you want with this kid? What do you want from me? Where on earth do you want to go? I know you're leaving now. It is hurting just as much as it did the first time you left. I don't understand.

Then Isane stopped her in her tracks. She had won the battle with Kira moments before, and she was going back to her captain. Isane began an emergency alert. Rangiku could barely stop from trembling now. Every word out of Isane's mouth was one closer to finding out something horrible, and she knew in her heart that Gin would be involved somehow.

"Everything I am about to say is all true," Isane began. Isane's words tumbled out quickly in a horrible nightmare.

For a moment, only one thing registered, "Captain actually lost?" Then it sunk in, Aizen beat Hitsugaya. Aizen nearly killed Hinamori. Aizen's second in command was Gin. Her Gin.

The world shattered, and Rangiku's soldier took over.

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Soooo much referencing from the manga. It made it soooo pesty and difficult to write! Aaaaaaaaaaaahhh! And it's sad. :(


	72. Heartfelt Apology

Worked 16 hours today. Spent close to 14 of them on my feet, usually running around. The sad part is that I was more cheerful at work and worked harder than most of the girls who came onto the evening shift nice and fresh. They'd just sit there gossiping and I'd greet people and actually take people into my section (I'm a waitress haha.) Now I shall watch a touch of TV (as my sister is in the shower and I need hot water again haha), then shower, then sleeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeep.

**Thanks** to: gaasrasracoon, PunkRockHolly, blackteaplease, Blueberry Absinth, Beautiful Nightmare07, Falln4DarkAngel, and Solar Kitty.

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**72. Heartfelt Apology**

Rangiku could barely process what was happening around them. All she knew was that Aizen, Tousen, and _Gin_ had betrayed them all. Now there were on top of the hill about to complete whatever it was.

For a moment, Rangiku went still. What on earth could she possibly do? Against three captains? Against _him_.

Others made their moves; two captain levels held Aizen back, Hisagi to Tousen.

"Hya, what immense strength!" Gin said, throwing a hand up in the air carelessly. What ever should I do?"

Rangiku wrapped her hand around his wrist, surprised the touch did not send a shock through her. She pressed haineko to his throat. "Don't move, please!" She did not know whether it was an order or if she was begging him.

"Sorry Captain Aizen, she got me," Gin said.

Rangiku stood there silently. If Gin wanted to he could probably break away. She was just a lieutenant. Was there anything she could really do against a captain? Against _Gin_?

Captains talked for a moment; it sounded like uneasy banter for a moment.

"Sorry but it's time," Aizen said.

"Get away, Soifon!" Yoruichi-san said, pulling away abruptly.

A flash of strange light surrounded Aizen. Then Tousen. Rangiku's hand was wrenched away from Gin's wrist. She could barely leap back in time to avoid the light, dangerous as it was for her.

"Too bad. It would have been nice if my capture lasted a little longer." Gin said in a voice so low she could scarcely hear him. "Farewell, Rangiku. Sorry."

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Gin... Whyyyyyyyyyyyyyy do you have to be so stupid sometimes?! :(


	73. Shattered

Weeee day off. This one needed manga referencing too, so it took foreeevvverrr to write up. The next bunch do not, thank goodness! I also have another day off tomorrow, more yay ^____^

**Thanks **to: Blueberry Absinth, blackteaplease, Solar Kitty, Falln4DarkAngel, gaasrasracoon, Beautiful Nightmare07, PunkRockHolly, Care Bear on Fire, and Sonozaki-sama

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73. Shattered

There was a stupid vase on her coffee table. It had a single chrysanthemum in it. A gift from Gin just before the ryoka arrived. She could not stand to look at it, but her eyes kept wandering back. Her windows were shuttered and had been for a week; she did not want to see any light. She simply sat against the wall, arms crossed.

Her mind went over those words over and over again. _It would've been nice if my capture lasted a little longer… Sorry._ That's what she hated most about him.

"What an idiot…"

"Who?" Hitsugaya said.

"Wow!" Rangiku shrieked, jumping up hard. It hurt her chest. "You scared me so much that my boobs almost fell off."

"As if that's even possible," Hitsugaya said, his eyebrows quirking in an annoyed frown. "You have a visitor, Matsumoto."

Rangiku looked to the door, her eyes widened. She said, "Kira…"

"Um, Matsumoto-san, I…"

Rangiku smiled faintly. She knew what Kira was trying to say, and why he had done what he did. She understood what he was feeling all too well. She forced a grin onto her face; she might not believe it, but it might make everyone in the room feel a tiny bit better. She would be the Rangiku everyone knew. "Let's eat! I have soba buns!"

Soon, Rangiku opened her stash of sake. She poured big cups for both herself and Kira. The two downed the stuff carelessly, or perhaps with more care than they cared to admit. After all, the aim was to drown their sorrows.

"Gin! You pig head! Pig head!" Rangiku shouted somewhere between too much sake and way too much sake. "And what's with those weird eyes?"

"Yeah! Yeah!" Izuru chimed in, farther gone than Rangiku. "I could care less if he dies!"

Movement caught Rangiku's eye. "Eh? Where're you going, captain?" She had forgotten he was even there, quiet as he was.

"Bathroom."

"Matsumoto-san, Matsumoto-san," Izuru said. "Today, I'm going to drink until I throw up!"

She watched Hitsugaya walk out, for a moment, she felt like crying. He was in pain too today. Rangiku pushed the thought back and took a deep gulp of sake. "Take care!"

Hitsugaya never came back, but Rangiku did not expect him to. She and Izuru worked on getting themselves beyond drunk. The world became too small in her dark room, so Rangiku threw the windows open, letting fresh air inside. Then she saw Shuhei. She thrust her chest over the windowsill and waved a bottle of sake. "Hey Shuhei! Come join us!"

"Huh?" He said.

"You look free, so come have a drink with us," Rangiku said. She ignored Komamura walking beside him. Shuuhei had also lost his captain whom he had greatly respected.

Shuuhei looked below Rangiku's eyes; she knew where, and she encouraged it. "Sure. Thanks for the invitation," he said.

"Captain Komamura, would you like to join us too?" Rangiku called out, more to be polite than anything, but the more the merrier.

"No, but thank you," he said.

"He's uptight as always," Rangiku said once Shuuhei was inside. "And I noticed that he's not wearing the helmet anymore." She took a long swig from her bottle.

"Seems that way," Shuuhei said. "I've gotten used to his face anyway."

"Me too," Izuru said from the floor, slurring slightly. "Isn't it better? I never liked the helmet anyway, with the feeling of hiding something.

"What the?" Shuuhei said. "What happened to you, Kira? Why are you so drunk?"

"Oh!" Rangiku said, looking out the window. "Ichigo, Orihime! Want to come join us? We have some good sake!"

"Maybe later." Ichigo said as Orihime said, "We're underage!"

"I have tea, too," Rangiku mumbled. "They're so cold…"

"Tea? Please give me that instead, Rangiku-san. Ah, Kira is foaming…" Shuuhei said. Rangiku made a note to dump the tea. "Kira, hang in there, Kira. Also, Why are you only wearing your underwear?"

Rangiku blinked. What was going on behind her?

"Oh my, sounds like you guys are having fun," Kyouraku said. "Can I join too?"

"No, if captain joins, Nanao will just end up scolding me afterward," Rangiku said. Kyouraku could smell a party a mile away, and Nanao could find her captain anywhere. "By the way, Nanao was looking for you." That would be enough to chase Kyouraku off; if Nanao was looking for him, it meant there was work to be done. She said no more as Izuru and Shuuhei pulled her back inside. There were just too many pieces of her heart to pick up; she let sake sink her into oblivion.

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Love you all!


	74. Bitter Silence

Grrrr ffdotnet ate the extra stuff I wrote in, so now I have to redo it all. Stupid thing. I swear ffdotnet is friends with msn, and both are absolutely evil. Gotta work in the morning, long shift. Blaaaaah. Let's see here, what else... I need to stop being lazy and stockpile more drabbles, as I am out of my stockpile; I've been writing every day again whether I'm totally exhausted or not, ick.

**Thanks** to: blackteaplease, Blueberry Absinth, Akane-Higabana, LilyGirl101, Solar Kitty, cy-grl, Beautiful Nightmare07, Care Bear on Fire (sorry, but if dialogue in the manga is highly revelant it's just going to end up being included, just the way it is), and PunkRockHolly

Also, holy crap, I'm almost to 500 reviews. 500th reviewer gets a one-shot of their choice, so long as it's Bleach and not a pairing I abhor. I'm pretty liberal with pairings too. Just gotta be patient with me, as I'm still working on Solar Kitty's one-shot for 100 reviews.

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**74. Bitter Silences**

After Rangiku's drunken night and once she had sobered up once more, Rangiku put her smile back on. It was not just for her captain, her friends, her squad she put it on for, she wore it when she was alone too.

She had noticed it was much harder to cry if she was smiling. She did not want to waste tears on Gin, not when he had betrayed her so deeply.

But there were times, late nights when she laid in bed and there was no sake to keep her mind from thinking. Then Rangiku remembered him, and conversations rolled around and around in her mind.

There were so many answers from him that were shaded looks and quirks, shrugs and twisted smiles that went with no words. Before, they had seemed to be normal silences for Gin, with no hidden meaning, just Gin being Gin, mysterious and a little strange.

Now, Rangiku realized there were so many silences that probably dealt with Gin's betrayal that it felt like ice and acid were being thrown against her stomach in a crazy storm set on sending her to the bottom of the ocean. Those bitter silences haunted Rangiku when the world slowed down and there was nothing to take her away from it. Rangiku began keeping a few more sake bottles on hand as the days wore on.

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Grrr, I want to smack Gin.


	75. The True You

As usual, ffdotnet is trying to not let me update... Grrrr... Anyway, I'm three-quarters through! I can't believe there's less than a month to go now ^_____^

**Thanks** to: Solar Kitty, SwirlzSmile, blackteaplease, Blueberry Absinth, gaasrasracoon, cy-grl, PunkRockHolly, Beautiful Nightmare07, Sonozaki-sama, Care Bear on Fire, and Falln4DarkAngel. On a side note, I love to get to know new people so if you want to send me an e-mail or what not, go for it!

**CONTEST**: We're fast approaching 500 reviews, so in celebration, the 500th reviewer will receive a one-shot of their choice provided it is in the Bleach fandom and and pairings are not ones I despise (I'm very liberal with those) and no lemons.

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**75. The True You**

She had grown up with him. There had once even been a time when Rangiku spent every day with Gin; they ate and lived together. They had laughed and explored the world together.

Had she ever known him? Who was the stranger she had spent all of that time with? A scarier thought was wondering who the man was that she had made love to so many times. The person she had said "I love you" to over and over again.

She had no idea. Always, she had thought she knew what was lurking behind the smile, but she had been so wrong.

That meant she had spent years and years on someone she never knew. It made her wonder how much Gin could ever have truly cared about her since she had never really known him. After all this time, he seemed to be nothing but a stranger, someone she would never know.

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I know someone just like this....


	76. Pretence

Blah, I may have to work the next four nights in a row. If I have to work Saturday night I'll especially be blah, as I would have to work bar and I'm still a pretty inexperienced bartender and Saturdays are always pretty busy, ack. Talk about nerve-wracking, ne? I just dunno if I can handle it at all without another bartender. I'll see what happens tomorrow I guess.

**Thanks** to: blackteaplease, cy-grl, Beautiful Nightmare07, Akane Higabana, Blueberry Absinth, LilyGirl101, Solar Kitty, Falln4DarkAngel, Care Bear on Fire (my e-mail is dragen(underscore)eyez(at)hotmaildotcom just replace the parenthesis and stuff in the parenthesis with the right keyboard symbol and replace 'dot' with a period. ffdotnet won't let me format my e-mail correctly), PunkRockHolly, Ayamichan34, and gaasrasracoon

Wow. So you guys are leaving more and more reviews and it's totally amazing O.O You guys all get origami foxes!

**Contest**: The 500th reviewer gets a one-shot. More details in 75. If you guys review like you did for 75, well, we're at 491 now!

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**76. Pretence**

It had started with a smile; after all, Rangiku had always been someone who smiled easily. It went a good ways to making her look normal again. In fact, the smile alone made most of her squad stop looking after her in worry.

It was because of the people who knew her well that Rangiku reminded her to laugh in the right places, and make her silly comments. That took care of a few more people.

Hitsugaya and Nanao were harder to convince; they spent far more time with her; knew her so much better. Rangiku almost would have wanted to work, but the second she picked up a piece of paper, she felt Hitsugaya's eyes on her.

Sometimes, she felt like her insides were twisting with the effort of acting normally when her thoughts raged with Gin. When her mind was consumed, she had no idea how she made the right comments or guffawed at jokes. The jokes were not even funny to her most of the time now.

It was a good thing that Rangiku had always overindulged in alcohol, because now she lost herself in the stuff more than ever. That was barely noticeable though with as many times as Rangiku had been hung-over in Hitsugaya's office.

There was one habit that helped above all others; napping. It was a normal sort of thing for her, very normal during the work day. It wiped away pain and passed time, it masked her so she would not have to worry at all about pretending. She wished some days that she could nap away the world.

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Yeah, it's almost 4am, I'm really sleepy now, argh.


	77. Midnight

Blah to working four nights in a row, ewwww. So sleepy now, and I've hardly begun. I'm nearly done with Solar Kitty's one-shot! Finally!

**Thanks** to: Blueberry Absinth, blackteaplease, CrossroadsofLife, LilyGirl101, Spockie, Beautiful Nightmare07, Care Bear on Fire, PunkRockHolly, and Solar Kitty

**CONTEST WINNER: blackteaplease**, congratulations! Let me know about one-shot stuff, preferably by PM or e-mail, but review works too.

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**77. Midnight**

The stars were different in Hueco Mundo. There was something a little confusing about it as he stared up; it made him feel a little like being lost down a twisty turn in rukongai, wondering how on earth he was supposed to get back home. Only now, there was no home to go back to, or rather, this strange new place was supposed to be home. He would know the night sky soon enough, though. He had always spent far too much time staring up at the sky late at night.

The moon, though, was the same. The night was still and the moon shone brilliantly. Gin leaned against the balcony railing and sighed. It was still the same moon Rangiku looked up at. He could not help but think of her every time he saw that strange glowing orb; it was she who introduced him to it. Never would he have noticed it without her.

One day they had been out late, until the moon lighted their path instead of the sun.

_Rangiku ran into a clearing and looked straight up. "Oh wow," she said and fell backwards into the grass. She pillowed her head with her arms and kept staring up. "Look at the moon, Gin."_

_He humored her and laid down beside her. Gin looked up at the white circle. "What's so great 'bout th' moon?"_

"_I dunno. It makes me think of magic," Rangiku said and laughed. "And it's so pretty, and silver like your hair. I love it."_

"_You sayin' my hair's pretty?"_

"_No way, it's too messy for that," she said._

"_Shouldn' there be one o' them stories 'bout the moon fer ya ta like it so much?"_

_Rangiku sat up. "Gin, there doesn't always have to be a reason to like something. Sometimes, you just do, just because. I think it makes it even more special, don't you think?"_

"_Dunno, think there's always reasons fer stuff."_

"_Okay, why do I like the moon then?"_

_Gin was not sure whether she was going to laugh or kick him. "'Cause it's pretty, an' even if ya can't see it, it's there every night. It lights a path at nigh, an' ya can look at it better'n th' sun. It won' change like th' stars'll do when yer some place else. We'll still be lookin' at the same moon."_

_Rangiku had watched him a minute longer. "Maybe that's a good reason, but I still say I like it just because."_

"'_Course you do."_

_Rangiku smacked his arm, but then she wrapped her arms around her knees and stared up at the moon again. "Hey Gin?"_

"_Mm?"_

"_If you ever leave…" Rangiku said and paused a moment too long. Gin knew why; he had already left several times before. She did not like it when he did that. "Look up at the moon at night, okay? Then we'll be looking at the same thing, right?"_

"_Yeah, sure thing," he said. It was a promise that did not hurt to make, and if he never kept it no one would get hurt._

Gin let out a quiet sigh. After that, he had at least looked out the window to try to see a sliver of the moon. He had told himself he would not, that he would stop when he came here. It made him think too much of her. He wondered if she kept on looking at the moon and thought of him. His heart wished she did, but the rest of him hoped she did not.

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Ah Gin.... you have to know you're stupid.

77. Midnight


	78. Shadows

Possibly a bit of a companion piece to the previous drabble. Not sure, too tired to think much. Tomorrow is going to suck, but at least I have a pre-written drabble if I'm not able to write up a new drabble.

**Thanks** to: blackteaplease, Blueberry Absinth, SwirlzSmile, AkaneHigabana, PunkRockHolly, LilyGirl101, Beautiful Nightmare07, Care Bear on Fire, Ayamichan34, Solar Kitty, Renji's Girll, gaasrasracoon, and Sonozaki-sama. man, I think you guys review more on Fridays than any other day O.o

**Contest**: blackteaplease is going to have me write a one-shot centered on Rukia and Ichigo ^__^ I may sneak a little RanxGin in there, I just can't resist.

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78. Shadows

Rangiku sat up from her nap and rubbed her eyes. She had slept a little too long; it made her feel a little hazy. At the same time, Rangiku wished she could lay back down and sleep the rest of the day away. But then she would be awake at night when it was eerie and quiet.

Then the moon shined in through her window and made her think of him. It hurt to look, but every night she still glanced out her window for even a sliver even if it was storming outside. Then she would look away and stare into her darkened room.

The moon made strange shadows in her room. If she stared for too long into the dark, the shadows seemed to move. When she began to nod of at night, those moving shadows would startle her awake and she would have to look closely to make sure there was no one making them move. One or twice, she had even turned her bedside table on. It revealed nothing but what he expected, never what she nearly hoped, what she feared.

Something moved in the corner of her eye. Rangiku snapped her neck in the same direction. For that moment as she turned to look, she almost believed she would see him. It led to mixed relief when it was merely her curtain shifting in a breeze.

The late night visits and daylight adventures were over now. They had to be. Rangiku hated it.

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y'know, scary movies make me paranoid like that. Gin is a scary movie =(


	79. Summer Haze

First, thank you all for your good wishes for my time at the bar tonight! It actually went really, really well. A weird combination of the city's biggest concert of the year AND bad weather made this Saturday unusually slow, but busy enough that I still got to try out making a lot of new drinks, which was awesome experience for me. Not great money tonight, but I'm happy over all. I even got free pizza out of it from my manager AND a note of awesomeness in the official manager book thing about me, weeee.

**thanks** to: blackteaplease, Blueberry Absinth, Solar Kitty, i-is-animefreak, appledoodle, PunkRockHolly, Beautiful Nightmare07, LilyGirl101, and Ayamichan34

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**79. Summer Haze**

Hueco Mundo was a dry, barren place. Little grew and the landscape was much the same color. It was boring, and dusty. There were few people around too, so everyone knew who Gin was; he could not walk down a street with the same ambiguity he had in rukongai. The temperature was far different as well. During the day, sometimes it was blisteringly hot, at night the temperatures plummeted. Gin was not a fan of deserts.

He had taken to skulking down dark hallways, spying from doorways and causing what little mischief he could. There were so few people to play with, and those around knew to watch for him. The troublemaker in Hueco Mundo was still Gin; he was too good at making mischief for it to be otherwise; however, he had taken to staying hidden in the shadows for longer and longer periods of time. The show needed to get a move on; Gin was getting bored.

At this time of year, Soul Society got hot and muggy day and night. Sleep became uncomfortable and there had been little two kids in rukongai could do about it. Rangiku would give up fanning herself after a few moments and lay sprawled out in the shade. At those moments, she reminded him of a cat trying to cool off, too warm to be happy.

On one of those days, Gin had pulled her up from where she lay and tugged her resisting form on a forty minute walk that she had been none too pleased about. Rangiku had threatened to kick him, but it took too much effort to carry out the threat.

Then Gin picked her up and threw her in the river. Rangiku came up sputtering and splashed him with all her might. He jumped in the water to give him plenty of ammunition to fight back with. The water sent a shiver up his spine and he felt mud squish between his toes, cold and squishy.

The cool water flowing around them made them forget the mugginess of the day, how hot they had been trying to sleep. It made the summer beautiful again, wonderful. It was these sorts of moments that made people love summer.

Gin had let Rangiku win the water fight. She had gloated about it the entire way home. Eventually, they were miserable from the sticky heat again, but after the river, nothing seemed quite as bad.

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Now I think I'm gonna go do some laundry, tidy up a bit. then sleep, and back to work tomorrow night. How lame is that?


	80. Memories

I guess I did so well Saturday night that I'm getting a sort of mini-promotion in that I'll be bartending more evenings. Was very nice news. Now my head hurts like crazy from weather changes. Ugh.

**Thanks** to: Care Bear on Fire, blackteaplease, Blueberry Absinth, cy-grl, AppleDoodle, Solar Kitty, Crossroads of Life, LilyGirl101, PunkRockHolly, gaasrasracoon, Beautiful Nightmare07, Falln4DarkAngel, and Ayamichan34

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**80. Memories**

As Gin kept more and more to the shadows, he lived in the shadows of his memories more often. He knew it was fruitless, but his mind wandered so often to Rangiku; his thoughts invariably turned to her, to the moments he spent with her. He thought often of his squad and Izuru as well. He wondered how the young man was handling the unruly squad, how the squad treated his absence, no, his betrayal. An absence meant an accepted reason, and usually a return.

Those were the times he had lived, those moments without Aizen. He had followed his own path more closely then than when he followed Aizen's orders. Yamamoto-san was a far easier man to serve than Aizen, and far more fair as well. None of that had occurred to him before he left.

Now he sometimes wondered a stray, terrifying thought. Had he made the right choice?

What unsettled him more was that it did not matter now whether the choice was the wrong one. There was nothing he could do to undo it.

So Gin did not think of it at all, if he could help it.

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What's your favorite cereal? Mine's Honeynut Chex


	81. Change in the Weather

BLAH! ffdotnet is just destroying me with bad formatting tonight right after I nearly forgot to post this for being so tired that I fell asleep on my couch. Twice.

**thanks** to: Blueberry Absinth, LilyGirl101, AppleDoodle, cy-grl, PunkRockHolly, Solar Kitty, Care Bear on Fire, and Ayamichan34

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**81. Change in the Weather**

Hitsugaya sighed and sat at his desk, frowning down at a piece of paper. He ran a hand through his hair, making if far messier than it already was.

Rangiku decided he had no idea she had woken up. "Captain!" She hugged him to her chest from behind, loving how much he loathed it. "What're you staring at so hard? Working too hard is bad for your health."

Hitsugaya mumbled something that sounded suspiciously like "Then you ought to be the healthiest person on earth."

"Well?" Rangiku would ignore the mean comment; after all, her captain had a lot of tough things to deal with lately.

"I have to find a lieutenant to head a trip to the world of the living to investigate—"

"Oh, me, me," Rangiku said. "I'll do it. Going to the world of the living is so much fun. The clothes are so much cuter and cheaper there too."

"You won't be going there to shop," Hitsugaya said harshly.

But that meant Rangiku had already won, she would be going for something after all, just not shopping, according to Hitsugaya. She just would not shop all the time. "Thank you captain, you're the best captain in the whole wide world. I have to go tell everyone now, bye-bye."

"Wait," Hitsugaya said. "You still have a huge stack of paperwork to do."

Rangiku was already out of the door, "Sorry, I can't hear you, Captain."

This might be exactly what she needed, a change of scenery. New sights and people to meet, it would be more than enough to distract her mind from _him_. It would be a welcome distraction indeed. The amazing shopping did not hurt at all either.

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So what's your favorite book? Mine's "Forgotten Beass of Eld" it was the first big fantasy novel I'd ever read, and I never turned back.


	82. Illogical

Ugh, tomorrow is going to be horrible. I'm going to get about 2 hours of sleep, up at 8am, busy allllll day until 12:30am. There is a slight chance because of that stuff that I will not be able to update, but I will try really really hard to still do so.

**Thanks** to: AppleDoodle, Blueberry Absinth, LilyGirl101, Ayamichan34, PunkRockHolly, gaasrasracoon, and Solar Kitty

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**82. Illogical**

Windows gleamed, revealing sparkling gems inside, the newness making them all the more tantalizing. Rangiku did not spare her official duties a second thought, even though her captain had had to follow her to the world of the living to keep order in her small group.

If anything, his presence, determined to make them all work so hard, made Rangiku more persistent in her desire to shop than before. Rangiku flounced in and out of shop after shop, gaining a bag or two from almost every store. Her credit card would be moaning when she returned to seireitei, but it was no matter to her. Rangiku had no idea how the accountants in seireitei maintained accounts in the world of the living, but she never questioned it, not when she could by a brand new adorable outfit for so little.

And since it was so little, why not get a second or even a third outfit? Rangiku felt freer than she had in weeks. Her shopping bags did not even weigh or slow her down. She spun around in her new heels, admiring her reflection in a window as she did so.

Rangiku stopped mid-spin. A silver pendant caught her eye and made her smile fade. Now her shopping bags felt incredibly heavy. The pendant was intricately made; it almost seemed as if there were individual hairs on the face. The little silver fox grinned up in a closed-eye smile. That grin was so eerily familiar that it could not help but haunt Rangiku.

A few moments later, Rangiku turned on her heel and made her way back to Orihime's home.

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Someone else had read Forgotten Beasts of Eld! It made me really happy haha. What's your favorite board game? Card game? I'm having fun getting to know you guys ^__^ Mine is Monopoly. I'm evil with that game. I also love cribbage, because that's the game I play with my grandfather nad I love him to pieces.


	83. Only Human

Tired, sleep good.

**Thanks** to: SwirlzSmile, cy-grl, Beautiful Nightmare07, LilyGirl101, AppleDoodle, Blueberry Absinth, PunkRockHolly, Solar Kitty, Ayamichan34, i-is-animefreak, and gaasrasracoon

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**83. Only Human**

Part of what made Gin so good at being mischievous was that he himself was very hard to crack. There was almost nothing one could say that would perturb him, that Gin was not prepared for.

Aizen's espada had tried everything they could think of to upset him, anything to stop being the subjects of his torment. This only increased Gin's amusement at their expense, making him cause ever more trouble.

Gin particularly enjoyed bothering Tousen. There was something he loathed about the man. Perhaps it was the continuous string of lies he fed to his lieutenant, to his best friend. Gin had done much the same, but he had cared about Rangiku and Izuru. That made him better, right? Thankfully, it never crossed Tousen's mind that Gin might possibly care about another person apart from himself.

Aizen was one person Gin could not play. Aizen would reveal Gin's weak points in a heartbeat.

Gin stepped into Aizen's throne room, as Gin liked to think of it.

"It seems I haven't seen you for days, skulking about as you do, Gin," Aizen said.

"Ah, yeah, just 'causing a lil' mischief."

"The espada spotted several shinigami from soul society today," Aizen said.

Something in his voice caught Gin's attention. He wanted to watch Aizen's face closely, but that might give him away. Instead, he examined a chair, plucking up a bit of fabric. "Oh dear, that must be causin' them some trouble."

"Perhaps," Aizen said. "It seems your old childhood friend Rangiku is among them."

Gin felt the air in his lungs squeeze itself out in a silent rush. He forced the words out and said, "Tha' so? Shouldn' cause ya much trouble. Ain't like she's a cap'n."

"You think I should worry about a captain, mm?" Aizen said. "You have so little faith in me?"

"I ain't said tha'," Gin said. "I said some trouble is all."

Aizen chuckled and said, "You are fond of trouble."

Gin grinned his strange, foxy grin, but he was reeling inside. Just how innocent was Aizen's comment? How much did he know?

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uhh... my favorite color is blue. or green. or uhhh... let's stop there. what about you?


	84. A Place to Belong

Okay, so I have an announcement that you guys reeeally aren't going to like, I'm afraid. For a week or two this story will be going on hiatus. This is because there are very few drabblse left, and today's manga release, chapter 404, gives very strong indication that some very important developments are going to be going on that could very much affect these. If it takes longer than two weeks to find out what I need to know, then I will continue the drabbles as normal. I will also have a weekly drabble with update about the situation. I'm sorry about this, but I'm trying to follow the manga storyline more or less so this could be quite important.

**Thanks** to: SwirlzSmile, Blueberry Absinth, LilyGirl101, AppleDoodle, cy-grl, Beautiful Nightmare07, Ayamichan34, PunkRockHolly, Solar Kitty, and gaarasracoon

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**84. A Place to Belong**

There was a strange thing in Hueco Mundo, there were no friends for Gin. There was no one to talk to, no one to give persimmons to, no one who knew the color of his eyes, no one that smiled when they saw him.

What struck Gin the strangest about all of that was that he had never once noticed these things in Seireitei. He called everyone save one woman toys, and relished tormenting them all. But something made him give Yachiru sweets, not just because it caused mayhem for her squad. He always gave Ukitake extra persimmons, and he saved Kenpachi from the sharp side of Kuchiki's sword, and always he stopped to chat with Kuchiki. He even cheered Izuru up on his most depressing days. There was no place on earth like Rangiku's arms either.

Hueco Mundo was a powerful place, and always Gin had sought greater strength. He had wanted to keep climbing. But he lived in a lonely place now too. A place where he did not know if he really belonged. But he was making a new world with Aizen, this was simply a stepping stone. That would change, wouldn't it?

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Please don't hate or kill me? Pleeeease?


	85. Advantage

I have been so busy lately. And the manga has been driving me craaaazy. I know a RanxGin scene has to be very close to happening... but when? I'm hoping this next time. I want to continue these! Actually, if this week's manga doesn't reveal more, I may go ahead and just finish... but...! I would love to be able to find out first *sigh* Kubo Tite, you're driving me craaaaaazy!

Also, if you've sent me a PM and I have not yet responded, tell me so, because life's been crazy and I accidentally deleted some stuff I didn't mean to .

**Thanks** to: Solar Kitty, PunkRockHolly, redphyire, Beautiful Nightmare07, Lady Drama, AppleDoodle, Ayamichan34, gaasrasracoon, CrossroadsofLife, Blueberry Absinth, LilyGirl101, Falln4DarkAngel, Stebbins -Stella-, blackteaplease, Renji's Girll, and Care Bear on Fire. wow, that's a lot of reviews. taking time away seems to be good for that O.O

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85. Advantage

Gin was mostly certain that Aizen would win the war. The man had advantage after advantage over seireitei. In a logical way, it just made sense. The former captain five was incredibly powerful. He was backed by an army seireitei knew little about. On top of that, he knew the enemy inside and out; he had studied them for years. Even the _wild card_ seireitei had placed hope in was someone Aizen had known about since the kid's birth.

In contrast, seireitei had trusted Aizen, loved him and told many, many secrets to. Aizen had told no truths to anyone, except himself and Tousen. Really, Gin was not sure how much Aizen really told Tousen. The blind man seemed like more of a pawn, to the foxy ex-captain. Gin, however, had Aizen's trust. The one person Aizen felt was his lieutenant meant great trust.

A lieutenant. That was not the word Gin wanted to be described as. How insulting. He was powerful, had the fastest zanpakuto there was, and he had bankai. It irked Gin that Aizen kept calling him his lieutenant.

But if Gin was not Aizen's lieutenant, that meant he was not with Aizen. That made him the enemy. Gin did not like losing, at all. Still, of all the enemies Aizen could have, Gin wondered if he would not be the most dangerous. After all, Aizen trusted Gin, told him things he told no one else. If Gin's loyalty changed, perhaps captain five would have to worry a little bit. But then, Aizen knew Gin all too well. Gin wanted to win, he wanted power. He wanted it all.

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I may win 50 bucks from work tomorrow! We have a contest to see who sells the most promo items, and I'm way in the lead (unless someone does amazing things today.) Wish me luck! Also, favorite fruit? Favorite vegetable?


	86. Breakfast

Well, I have given up on convincing Kubo Tite to move the RanxGin moment along and so I'm just going with what little I have. I'd very much like to finish this up, haha! Sorry to keep you all waiting so long, but I did gain a few invaluable insights, at least!

**Thanks** to: gaasrasracoon, Solar Kitty-chan, Ayamichan34, AppleDoodle, Blueberry Absinth, blackteaplease, Stebbins -Stella-, Sonozaki-sama, PunkRockHolly, Beautiful Nightmare07, CrossroadsofLife, and Crimson Fade

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**86. Breakfast**

Gin prodded the stuff in his bowl with a spoon. Chunks of something slid away from it. It reminded him of soup, but it was cold and sweet. What had Noitra called it? Cereal. Fruity Pebbles cereal. It was disgusting. Colorful flakes were crispy for a moment before the milk had turned them into mush, and the mush had turned the milk an odd, unappetizing color.

Cereal was the common breakfast item now. Gin was tired of it after the second bite. The first bite, it had been novel, new. Even exciting. Now, it was just something to shove into his mouth. Potatoes on the edge of turning were tastier. A fried cockroach was tastier. His fare as of late left something to be greatly desired. The problem was Hueco Mundo was a desert with little water and even less food unless one was a hollow. This meant lesser arrancar were sent out on a regular basis to obtain human food.

They all had horrible taste.

Gin abandoned his bowl and laid back on his bed, staring at his ceiling. What he really wanted was an omelet. He did not cook; his attempts always ended in disaster. But there was one person who had cooked for him so often. She had made omelets that looked strange and sometimes had rather unique fillings, but always he had enjoyed them. Everything was cooked just right, the eggs just fluffy enough, and best of all, he had shared those breakfasts with Rangiku.

It hurt to even think her name, let alone say it. How much had he lost that day? A good breakfast might be the least of it all. Maybe when he was nearly godlike in power, Aizen victorious, he would at least have a better breakfast.

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I have now tried Jack Daniels and coke, it is quite yummy. I also like Captain Morgan and coke.. I wonder which I really like better... hmm... What's your favorite drink, alcoholic and/or otherwise?


	87. Echoes

Been awhile since regular updates. Damn Kubo Tite! However! From here on out there will be daily updates once more. Not many more to go now! Wow.

**Thanks** to: Solar Kitty-chan, Stebbins -Stella-, Blueberry Absinth, Beautiful Nightmare07, blackteaplease, AppleDoodle, Sonozaki-sama, LilyGirl101, CrossroadsofLife, and katiegirl101199.

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**87. Echoes**

Rangiku crossed into the fake Karakura town with her captain and others. Her heart was pounding. Fear, excitement, anger, it all poured into adrenaline. Her body felt like an electric current was running through it.

Though she had been in battles before, this would be the biggest battle by far, and the most important. It brought out so many emotions for Rangiku she thought it would have been hard to focus, but the battle training had been instilled in her for far too long for that.

But this battle had more finality to it than she liked. Certainly, Aizen was the greatest enemy, the arrancar were all enemies too, but Gin was considered the second greatest threat. Rangiku prayed she did not encounter him; if he raised his sword to her, she did not believe she could raise hers.

Even worse, she feared she would hear that apology again on the battlefield. Then her heart would crumble apart before the glue had even been applied. The echoes of his words still chipped at her heart, even now.

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Do any guys read this? Are you morning or night people (I'm a big time night owl)? Anyone else have a shoe fetish (I have 100 pairs of shoes)? Any other silly fetishes?


	88. Falling

Man... I might be quitting my job soon because they're still being jerks about my schedule. Ugh. I really like having a job too.

**Thanks** to: blackteaplease, capslocknanao, Beautiful Nightmare07, Blueberry Absinth, Stebbins -Stella-, katiegirl101199, Ayamichan34, undauntedheiress, and Falln4DarkAngel

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**88. Falling**

It was strange to be surrounded by an inferno and feel no heat, to not be bothered by the flames shooting up around him until his eyes would have hurt if they weren't shut so tightly. Gin could not say he minded; it removed him from the battle. He supposed that was odd for him; after all, he was well known for enjoying battle perhaps too much. But this way, he could pretend he was not interested in the battles outside.

But then he felt a reiatsu; one of the ones he could not help but search for. "Oh!"

"What is it, Ichimaru?" Tousen said, voice as snide as ever when he directed it at Gin.

"Yeah… It feels like Izuru's really pissed off."

"Are you worried?" Tousen said. "You abandoned him."

"No," Gin said, hating Tousen at that moment. It was all too true, and Tousen loved to rub it in even if he thought Gin did not really care; after all the self-proclaimed man of justice seemed to feel nothing for the lieutenant and friend he left behind. Gin looked skyward, smiling a strange little grin. "I'm just glad he's doing well."

He did not need to glance at Tousen to see the other's sneer. He knew it was there. He just did not care. His lieutenant had always been prone to moping and bouts of depression. Despite how often Gin tormented and teased Izuru though, he had always been there to drag Izuru out of the dark. One really could not do paperwork in the dark, after all. And if Izuru did not do it, then Gin would have been stuck with all sorts of boring work.

That was Gin's excuse anyway. Admitting Izuru was a friend, a good friend, just could not have a good outcome for any of them.

The war, the way it would inevitably go, would kill Izuru. The reiatsu Gin forced himself not to search for, not to find, to block out as much as possible, that one, too, would eventually blink out.

Gin wished it was raining, instead of burning. He wanted rain to fall down like tears. Instead, the air was as dry as his eyes had to be. He had made his choices. There could not be any going back at this point; some things were just impossible.

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Shameless promotion of my other Bleach RanxGin fic: A Twist of Fate. Go read! Though sadly I think it's less awesome than these drabbles :( What's your fave none RanxGin pairing in Bleach?


	89. Picking up the Pieces

Man, I am sooo tired of being tired! I have so much stuff to do lately it's unbelievable, ugh. I'm not sure how I'll get all of it done, haha. Also, I have the WEIRDEST fascination for RukiaxGin fics. I... just... don't even understand me.

**Thanks** to: Blueberry Absinth, cy-grl, blackteaplease, CrossroadsofLife, Solar Kitty, AppleDoodle, Stebbins -Stella-, Beautiful Nightmare07, katiegirl101199, capslocknanao, and PunkRockHolly

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**89. Picking up the Pieces**

Standing in an inferno was not the most entertaining thing to do. Gin wished he had brought a pack of cards or a puzzle. Anything to give him something to do. All he had to occupy his time was to seek out reiatsus and think. Neither was a good choice; the reiatsus he could seek out the best were those of the people he knew the best, which simply could not end well. As much as he enjoyed fighting and taking the lives of hollows, when it came to the reiatsu of someone he care about blinking out it did not sit well with him at all. He was afraid of dying, and he was afraid of death.

He did not like this battle.

Gin opted to think instead of eaves drop on dying shinigami; in his mind, that was really the only outcome, in the end. There was truly nothing that could oppose someone like Aizen.

There was nothing Gin could do, nothing that would matter. Even if he suddenly joined ranks with the shinigami nothing could change. Aizen would simply kill Gin too, then. At least this way Gin would live.

Even if Gin switched sides, he could not undo the betrayal. He would be put to death, even if they somehow won the battle against Aizen. The shinigami who really matter would still hate him. He remembered how Rangiku's sword trembled when she had held it to his throat. How could he possibly pick up the pieces? Did he even want to? He had spent one hundred years serving Aizen. This was the path he wanted, it had to be.

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Have you ever met a friend you made on the internet in person? I still have no ideas for my IchigoxRukia one-shot, yet I love that pairing, ahhhhh! Does anyone here like cereal? What's your favorite kind?


	90. Possession

Ugh. I have to be at work two hours early tomorrow, and STILL work til the second shift starts. I'm going to make hardly any money and it's going to be a horrible, long day. Wednesday or Thursday, I'm going to start looking for a new job. I'm nooooot happy at all with how work is going right now, ugh. I have too much to do already... I didn't even have time to write tonight; thank goodness for pre-written drabbles. Also, there'll be several chapters with conversation from the manga, but I've tried to focus on, well, not what's happened in the manga, but rather original drabble stuff going on around and during the conversation, if that makse sense?

**Thanks** to: Solar Kitty, PunkRockHolly, Stebbins -Stella-, Blueberry Absinth, Ayamichan34, katiegirl101199, Beautiful Nightmare07, and AppleDoodle

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**90. Possession**

Rangiku could hardly focus on doing more than breathing in and out. She may have been out of danger from dying but she still hurt a great deal and had a lot of healing left to do. She was a lieutenant; she should have been more help on the battlefield. Instead, all she did was get herself badly hurt and take up healing resources without defeating the enemy.

She had wondered if that would be the case from the start; the espada were just so strong, and Aizen and the two ex-captains were even stronger. What could a lieutenant do? It really was a fight for captain-class shinigami. But Rangiku could not help but come, not when he would inevitably be there.

The tops of several buildings suddenly sheared and crumpled down in a heap all at once. The scale was incredible; a knife across the sky in a single flash too fast to see.

"Gin," Rangiku said.

There was not a doubt about it; that had been Gin's bankai. He had been enveloped by Yamamoto's flames. It was strange, Gin had to have been showing off when he did that; the length was not really his bankai's strength. She focused on the reiatsus. Ichigo was fighting Gin. Something went cold in Rangiku. She would do something worthwhile in this battle, or die trying.

She climbed to her feet, heedless of Izuru's cries. Rangiku ran as fast as she could, one hand clutched to her aching side. It was a suicide mission; if she met a single enemy on her way, she would be killed. Gin, he would likely kill her. But she had to try to change his mind, she had to stop him, somehow.

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Man, you guys always make me so happy. Do you guys like these random questions at the end? Do you have any questions you'd like me to answer/ask?


	91. Twilight

Realized I really won't have time to go apply for jobs tomorrow, which sucks. It leaves me only Thursday to do so, which is my major day off/when I try to get all sorts of stuff done. Ugh. I better have more than one day off this upcoming week. Have a test tomorrow! I didn't really study, I wonder if I'll do okay haha.

**Thanks** to: Solar Kitty, blackteaplease, Ayamichan34, Blueberry Absinth, Stebbins -Stella-, Beautiful Nightmare07, katiegirl101199, AppleDoodle, jeweliasands, capslocknanao, and PunkRockHolly

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**91. Twilight**

"Why don' we jus' watch the battle?" Gin said. He knew the orange-haired kid would take it as a lie, but it was not. He had acted once in this battle, and somehow it did not sit right with him. In fact, he regretted it. But Aizen had given him a look; it told him that Gin's life was moving close to the line from his inaction. Aizen had even called him out on it.

There was only so much even Gin could play off due to his strange, quirky nature.

Ichigo stepped up the battle; Gin had to put an effort into it. He passed up several openings; his heart just was not in it. This was not fun. Why should he do it if it was not fun for him? But his life seemed to depend on it; Ichigo would kill him if he could. Gin wondered just how much he had changed since he came to Hueco Mundo, not wanting to battle, not wanting to cause trouble, really.

Gin shot his sword out, barely missing Ichigo; his aim perfect.

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So thank you reviewers who suggested questions for this chapter! Feel free to suggest other questions! What's your favorite sport and team (thank you Ayamichan34)? For basketball, well, I'm just a college basketball fan, supporting my university. I don't like American football, but right now I'm rooting for Mexico in the soccer World Cup, mostly 'cause I'm friends with a Mexican who has much pride for his team. Sports and I don't mix well haha, I'm a klutz. What's your favorite kind of cookie (thanks PunkRockHolly)? Mine is peanut butter. Yuuuum.


	92. Nowhere and Nothing

Man, for a little while, I wasn't sure if I was going to be able to upload this tonight. For some reason my copy of MS Word did all kinds of cuckoo stuff and I had to take it off and put it on again . Definitely not fun. But I fixed it in time! Yay!

**Thanks **to: Lady Drama, blackteaplease, Stebbins -Stella-, Solar Kitty, Ayamichan34, capslockNanao, AppleDoodle, PunkRockHolly, Blueberry Absinth, undauntedheiress, and CrossroadsofLife

**Dedication: **capslocknanao for the review that cracked me up AND revealed Aizen's weak point! His mullet. Cut the mullet off, save the world! Go, Gin, Go!

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**92. Nowhere and Nothing**

Gin's cat and mouse antics were interrupted by Aizen's appearance.

"Open the senkaimon," Aizen said. "We are going to raid the Karakura Town seireitei."

"Yessir." Really, what else was there to say to such a power at that moment?

Then the chrysalis period ended. The strange shell that had surrounded Aizen broke away, revealing the man beneath once more. He looked different, not simply from the longer hair, which put Gin ill at ease. That definitely was not natural. Nor were Aizen's eyes.

"Now I can watch the demise of seireitei with my own eyes."

Gin opend the senkaimon immediately. Disobedience would not be met with at this point; it would just get him killed. But the thought of seireitei destroyed chilled him. The place was, after all, his hometown. His home, where so many memories had existed.

They entered Dangai and almost immediately felt the whirrings of Kotoutsu. Gin warned Aizen away from it, reminding the ex-captain of the dangers, rambling on more and more as a dark glint entered Aizen's eyes. The man really was beginning to believe he was all powerful, and he was, perhaps, not entirely liking Gin's warnings. All at once, there was an explosion; Gin shield his face with an arm. All at once, Kotoutsu was no more.

"What are you so afraid of, Gin?"

"…Karakura Town is over there?" Aizen said. "It seems like we've gone a ltitle astray."

"Please don' say it like it's my fault," Gin said. "My center got thrown off 'cause ya were bein' ornery."

"I suppose you're right," Aizen said. "My apologies. Shall we take a stroll?"

One thing Gin had always been good at was talking. Talking and lying. Aizen's actions in Dangai had given him a slight chance to do something that might help the shinigami, even just a little bit. It might lead to nothing but his death, but at least this way he would be able to say he tried to help Rangiku, Izuru, all of them. This way, he would not be the scum everyone thought he was. And too, Aizen's new power was staggering and soon, Aizen would not need Gin any longer.

Gin found a new fear; it was no longer just death.

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What are your hobbies? Mine definitely include writing, making jewelry, a little drawing, painting, even a little music-making once in a rare while. Does anyone enjoy something weird like vacuuming? We have a new dyson vacuum and I'm in loooove with it. Engineers making vacuums make for awesomeness.


	93. Answers

Sooo much homework to do still because I put off doing it. Ugh. Also, this is one of my favorite stories I've written because so many of you "talk" to me in your reviews. I just love you guys for it!

**Thanks** to: PunkRockHolly, Stebbins -Stella-, blackteaplease, Blueberry Absinth, Lady Drama, Spockie, AppleDoodle, Beautiful Nightmare07, capslocknanao, Ayamichan34, and Solar Kitty

Hrm. You know, I never expected this story to get this popular XDXD You guys are awesome. I'll be close-ish to 1000 reviews by the end!

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**93. Answers**

As Rangiku ran, she finally allowed herself of all the questions she had for Gin, the ones she had told herself over and over that she would never be able to ask. Each time her foot hit the ground, it jarred her side, sending waves of pain through her, but she did not slow down, even as the destruction became more evident and she had to jump over debris.

Then she saw the senkaimon close. Rangiku felt like crying. Did that mean it was too late? Had they lost? She knew that was not true, exactly. Not yet. Too many people were still alive, even if their reiatsus were weaker. Another senkaimon opened; Kurosaki and a strange shinigami she did not recognize went through the gate.

Rangiku opened a senkaimon, feeling dizzy using power she did not have at the moment. She raced through towards Karakura Town.

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So what country are you from? What's the coolest country/place you've visited? I'm from the USA, I've been to Canada a few times, but recently I went to Ireland, England, and France, where I fell in love with London XD


	94. Innocence

Feel terrible; horrible headache. Work in the morning. Blargh.

**Thanks** to: katiegirl101199, Blueberry Absinth, blackteaplease, capslocknanao, Ayamichan34 Solar Kitty, undauntedheiress, Stebbins -Stella-, Sonozaki-sama, and TwistedRoses132

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**94. Innocence**

Rangiku entered Karakura Town and stopped, breathing hard. It was hard to catch her breath; her right side was burning and pain flared with every breath. It was probably sheer will power that she was still standing.

Still, despite all of her training, it took a good while of concentrating to focus on Gin's reiatsu, strong and familiar as it was. Focusing on it made her feel a little better. Despite his betrayal, feeling his presence again was reassuring.

More running finally brought her around a corner. There he was, leaning against a wall, arms crossed. "Ya shouldn' be 'ere."

"I had to see you."

"Why?" Gin said. "Ya shouldn' wanna be anywhere near me."

"Why'd you leave?"

Gin watched her for a long time; it unnerved Rangiku; it was like he was reading her soul. Finally, he shrugged. Then, he said, "Yer hurt."

"Arrancar."

Gin's sword arm twitched; Rangiku hoped it was in anger that an arrancar injured her, not because it failed to kill her. She knew, though, that it was the first. "Ya shouldn'ta come."

"I just don't understand why, Gin," she said. "Soul society needs you… I need you… and…. You just left…"

"What else do ya expect from a man like me?"

Rangiku shrugged a bit. She had not come with an argument in mind; instead of being prepared, she had no idea what she was doing. Normally, Rangiku was excellent at winging it, but against Gin, right now, she was flailing in deep water. "You chose Aizen, I just don't understand, Gin."

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I'm addicted to food shows. So are you guys in school? Working? What're you studying/what kind of work? I'm in school for my CNA (nursing aide), and on my way to nursing or medical school to be a registered nurse or a medical doctor. I also am a bartender at Hooters haha.


	95. Simplicity

So tired, so annoyed with work, so much to do, ugh. I can't believe there's only five more of these left... I'm getting really sad, I'm gonna miss you guys a lot! I will still be working on another GinxRan fic for awhile after I finish these drabbles though called "Twist of Fate".

**Thanks **to: CrossroadsofLife, blackteaplease, Blueberry Absinth, AppleDoodle, Stebbins -Stella-, undauntedheiress, capslocknanao, LilyGirl101, katiegirl101199, Beautiful Nightmare07, Solar Kitty, Ayamichan34, Sonozaki-sama, and SwirlzSmile So many reviews this time! I think I'm definitely going to get over 800 O.O I wish I was able to get up to 1000 just because that'd be beyond amazing, but 800's pretty pleasing, ne?

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**95. Simplicity**

Gin thought of the bodies that lined Aizen's path; the man was unforgiving in his destruction. There did not seem to be a point to it, no goal was achieved. It almost seemed as if Aizen were crushing ants.

Rangiku stood there staring at him, watching, waiting. She clutched her side; her short torn away in a section. She had been wounded, and healed somewhat. He closed his eyes more tightly for a moment. It may have been a miracle she lived.

Aizen would find Gin in a moment, and Rangiku as well. Gin had no doubt Aizen would either kill Rangiku himself, or demand Gin kill her.

"I dunno anymore, Ran."

"What do you mean, you don't know?" Rangiku asked, voice elevating quickly. "You're the one who always has an answer."

"Can't have the answer all the time," Gin said, trying to think. Rangiku's presence made everything that much more dangerous.

"You used to be the one who protected me from the bad guys," Rangiku murmured. "But now you're one of the bad guys. What am I supposed to do?"

The truth felt like a blow. Gin felt Aizen's overwhelming reiatsu closing in. He could side with Rangiku or Aizen. If he sided with Rangiku, they would both likely die. If he sided with Aizen, his chances of living were much greater.

Gin did not have to think about it. He opened his eyes and looked into Rangiku's cornflower blue ones. "Ran, jus' trus' me, an' I'll protect ya again."

"Okay."

Gin closed his eyes again in relief. The problem was, now he had no idea how to stop Aizen. He would have to do a lot of fast thinking.

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What's your favorite season? Mine's spring or fall. Where's a place you would really like to visit or travel to? I'm crazy to see Venice!


	96. Reality

Ahhh so tired. Stayed up too late, again. I meant to go to bed 3 hours ago. I almost forgot to write this, then I was all "hmm.. maybe I'll just go to bed..." But then I went "no! I must be a good writer and keep my promises!" So I whipped this out, and it ended up being one of the longer drabbles for sure.

**Thanks** to: Stebbins -Stella-, blackteaplease (I'll be posting your one-shot tomorrow! XD), capslocknanao, Blueberry Absinth, AppleDoodle, CrossroadsofLife, Renji's Girll, LilyGirl101, gaarasracoon, Sonozaki-sama, Beautiful Nightmare07, PunkRockHolly, Solar Kitty, Ayamichan34, and katiegirl101199, and to all the other readers! Love you all!

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**96. Reality**

Gin wondered if he could just take Rangiku's hand and step through the senkaimon again. He could exit into soul society or hueco mundo and just keep walking. Eventually, they could reach somewhere beyond Aizen's reach, beyond everyone. Then Rangiku would be safe, and he would be as well.

The trouble was, Rangiku would not stay by his side if he did that. She would not even go through the senkaimon, he was sure. He did not even think about escaping alone. That would be worse, perhaps, than staying at Aizen's side.

Gin wondered if it was too late to be an honorable man. He had spent all of his time being nothing of the sort; he was trouble, a nuisance. For a moment, Gin took Rangiku's hand and squeezed lightly; her hand slid away, arms wrapping around him for a brief moment.

He had her trust, maybe even her love. "We jus' need ta stall 'til th' weird ryoka kid shows up. Think he an' his ol' man are plannin' somethin' an' if anyone can do something', it'll be those two."

"Are you really on our side now?"

"I'm on your side, Ran-chan," he said. "So I'm on whatever side you are."

Aizen finally turned the corner and looked on at the pair, something like amusement on his face. "What do we have here?"

"Jus' debatin' what ta do with 'er, Aizen," Gin said. "Was thinkin' ya might wanna start a harem or somethin' and if ya did ya'd hafta have the most beautiful women in seireitei."

"Just in seireitei?" Rangiku said, looking peeved. "In seireitei, the living world, Hueco Mundo, the universe. I'm clearly the most beautiful woman of all. I mean, look at me! Look at these!"

Gin could scarcely fight off a blush as Rangiku waved to her breasts and let her uniform slip open further. Aizen, too, stared. Gamble after gamble Gin seemed to be making, and the gambles were all long shots, nothing with good odds at all. The only thing he had to keep him going was the slim chance of a pay out, and if he succeeded, well, even then the payout might not be the best in the world. It might end with him sentenced to death by seireitei if not death by Aizen.

Gin began rambling about harems and attractive women and Aizen went along with it. The ex-captain wondered if Aizen thought Gin was trying to start a harem with Rangiku because he did not want her dead. That worried him too, but there was little else he could do about it.

The Kurosaki men showed up abruptly, appearing in space in front of them. Gin's tongue felt dry from talking nonsense as nerves slowly overcame him. For a moment, Gin felt safe, but then terror slid underneath his skin. He knew not even Rangiku or Aizen could tell he was afraid, but he was terrified. Death frightened him terribly, and here, he was trying to face it as something near inevitable.

"Ahh, if it isn't Kurosaki-kun, back to play," Gin said in a sing-song pattern. He drew his sword. "I guess ya didn' have enough, huh?"

"Not until you're dead!"

Gin wondered if Kurosaki would possibly take back his words. Instead, Isshin blocked Gin's sword. Well, that was interesting. Perhaps this meant something had changed, if Ichigo was to go up against Aizen. If something changed, perhaps there was hope.

All at once, Gin released Kamishini no Yari. The shot was perfect; it did knick Isshin's shoulder, but more importantly, the blade shot through Aizen's heart and out his back. Something like glass seemed to shatter back.

The hoguyoku. Gin pulled back his sword even as he felt Aizen's power slam into him. It send him flying back and down. But Gin decided it was worth it; after all, in the end he had saved the one person who mattered the most; Rangiku.

Because Gin knew something about his blow to Aizen; it had made the man mortal. And a mortal man against Ichigo Kurosaki stood no chance.

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I'm getting sadder and sadder... I don't wanna stop talking to all of you guys, I'm gonna miss you. Everyday I looove checking my e-mail now, where before my e-mail was usually empty, save spam :( What are some of your favorite manga series? I'm looking for new ones at my library right now (I can order books from anywhere in the country, it's really awesome so I have a huuuge selection!). Anime? Uhh.. I can't think anymore, too sleepy. Anyone else have questions for me to answer/ask?


	97. Acceptance

So this is the THIRD time I'm attempting to write my comments. ffdotnet is evil! Ugh. Anyway, I got work off today, so I was happy, but I was irritated because the girl who said she'd cover for me never showed up (but the managers knew she was taking my shift so thankfully I didn't get in trouble.) Also! There will be a 101st drabble as a little something extra. I'm also thinking about writing another GinxRan fic (not as long as this one) perhaps based on a reviewer's ideas. I also really wanna to get 1000 reviews, because that'd be all sexy, but I don't think I'm gonna make it, ah well.

Also, I have posted the oneshot for **blackteaplease** for winning the 500th review contest. It is called "Rain" and features Rukia and Ichigo. Go read and enjoy!

**Thanks** to: blackteaplease, SwirlzSmile, Blueberry Absinth, Stebbins -Stella-, Beautiful Nightmare07, capslocknanao, Solar Kitty, Spockie, Crimson Fade, PunkRockHolly, AppleDoodle, LilyGirl101, Sonozaki-sama, Ayamichan34, gaarasracoon, and katiegirl101199

**Dedication**: blackteaplease and PunkRockHolly for providing questions!

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**97. Acceptance**

Rangiku found herself in her room, leaning against a wall, windows all shuttered. She should have been out in the sunshine celebrating, drinking sake down with everyone else. Rangiku should have been making toasts to Kurosaki Ichigo and visiting her injured friends until they were grinning and laughing.

But her heart was just not there.

There was a small room in the fourth division that was under heavy guard. Kidou barriers made it into a fortress of a prison; shinigami stood outside the door and windows. Physical bonds tied reiatsu back until there was almost nothing left. The man in those bonds was barely alive; life and death flickering back and forth, a tiny flame in a breeze.

If he lived, he faced trial for all of his crimes and there were so many it would almost definitely mean death.

No, Rangiku could not join the festivities today, nor could she visit Gin in that fourth division room. She did not even want to at that moment.

Could one action erase one's crimes? Did it made up for all the bad he had done? It was true that Gin's actions against Aizen in that final battle had made all the difference, and Gin had paid dearly for it in Aizen's counterattack, but did that really mean Gin deserved forgiveness?

If Rangiku had had the energy, she would have thrown something breakable across the room, but right now it seemed far too much to even lift her hand. She wanted desperately to know who the man was lying unconscious in that room. The man who had betrayed her was a far different man than the one who had shared his dried persimmons with her, but Rangiku was sure one of those men had saved her from Aizen just days ago.

He had to wake up, she had to find out. But if it was not her Gin, her savior, but the Gin who had betrayed her that also betrayed Aizen, Rangiku wished he would just vanish. She was not sure she could endure seeing that man again, not after that final battle. Rangiku could not accept that man.

Rangiku sighed and closed her eyes. If she could just sleep, maybe it would all be a dream.

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Questions this time courtesy of blackteaplease! Favorite type of chocolate? hmm.. hazelnut chocolate and Toblerone! yumm. Favorite piece of clothing? Hmm.. probably shoes. I love shoes. And, uh, well, clothes in general. I'm very girly sometimes. Question from PunkRockHolly: What are some of your favorite artists/songs? Hmm.. I don't really have favorites, though lately I adore this song called "Exit Ghost" from Faderhead and "Danse Russe" from Hurt. I like music from many genres such as metal, pop, new age, classical, country, trance, electronica...


	98. Enthusiasm

So wow, IchigoxRukia is a much more popular genre than I thought! Blackteaplease's one-shot was very well received. I was quite happy about that; it even brought an old reviewer of mine from another fanfic in another genre in, which was quite cool. Work is still horrible as far as making money goes.

**Thanks** to: Solar Kitty, Stebbins -Stella-, capslocknanao, Nicky Eira (congrats on being reviewer 800!), Spockie, Beautiful Nightmare07, Sonozaki-sama, blackteaplease, katiegirl101199, PunkRockHolly, Blueberry Absinth, and gaarasracoon

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98. Enthusiasm

The chair was hard, the wooden back digging into his spine. Shifting did not help in the least; instead, it only tugged at Gin's wounds. They were healed enough he could get around and walk a short ways, but for the most part, he still had to rest frequently. If he was not so worried, he would be very bored. Instead, he just hurt.

He hardly paid attention to what everyone was saying. He was mostly certain of the outcome; he had not even expected to live through the fight. Rangiku was alive, though, and happy enough he supposed, so that was good enough.

Yama-jii asked him question after question. Gin responded mindlessly. It was not fun anymore to spin his word games. He was not even sure why he was being given a trial.

"Will anyone speak on Ichimaru Gin's behalf?" Yama-jii asked.

Gin listened to the crickets.

"Y-yes, I will," Izuru said. "Ichimaru may have made mistakes, but he was an excellent captain."

Gin listened to Izuru list virtues alongside faults, and somehow, Izuru made him sound almost like a good man, especially as the third squad came to Izuru's aid when the lieutenant struggled for words and blushed under Yama-jii's gaze.

The thing that made Gin stare in wonder was that they all seemed to be sure they were telling the truth. He was a horrible man; he had done terrible things, betrayed them all. How could they say things like that?

Even with that though, it meant little. Gin may have been a good captain, but then he betrayed everyone. Then he was no longer a captain.

"And in the end, Gin saved us all," Rangiku said. Gin stared at her; he had not seen her since the final fight. "He chose us in the end, and it was Gin who destroyed the Hoguyoku so that Aizen could be destroyed."

Gin closed his eyes and listened as Rangiku, and then Kurosaki spoke about that fight. Then Kyouraku and Ukitake spoke on his behalf. He was astounded; he could not comprehend their support, the enthusiasm they were defending him with. Were there really people who wanted him alive after everything he had done?

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I dunno what I think about this chapter. It was a bit... odd. Oh well. How old are you, or what age range? Do you believe in love at first sight?


	99. Game

Man, I hate writing endings. They're so horribly hard. Ah well. Almost there! I also have a day off tomorrow! So hopefully I'll get both drabbles written up, because Friday I go to school all day, then I work at night. Ugh. Gonna be a rough night. Also! If anyone wants to continue chatting with me after this story, my e-mail is dragen(underscore)eyez(at)hotmail(dot)com, just replace anything in ()s with the corresponding symbol, so (dot) would be . Otherwise, my e-mail is listed on my profile page if you're logged in; it's also my msn account. You guys have been spectacularly awesome to talk to.

**Thanks** to: Solar Kitty, katiegirl101199, Sakana-san, Blueberry Absinth, Stebbins -Stella-, blackteaplease, Ayamichan34, Beautiful Nightmare07, undauntedheiress, capslocknanao, LilyGirl101, PunkRockHolly, AppleDoodle, and Sonozaki-sama.

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99. Game

Gin stared at the ceiling; he had done a lot of that lately. He would rather have paced, but the room was too small, and Unohana had ordered him to rest. She kept checking on him, and even he knew to be a little afraid of her.

Still, Gin was glad he was still tired from being injured; otherwise, being locked in a cell would have been unbearable. He simply got bored too easily when he could not stimulate his mind. He might be stuck in the room for a long time, or only a few more hours. If the latter, Gin supposed he would go to the penitence tower before being killed. The calmness Gin thought about that with led him to wonder if Unohana had given him sedatives. He supposed that had been a good idea; he had made his own trial even more interesting by passing out sometime near the end. His wounds were slow to heal with his reiatsu sealed.

Yama-jii approached his cell with a few other noble representatives from the trial. "We have reached a verdict, Ichimaru Gin. You are guilty of crimes against seireitei."

Gin's heart could not help but tighten in a rough spasm.

"However, your actions in aid of seireitei in the end have redeemed some of those crimes. You are to be sentenced to five years of imprisonment," Yama-jii said.

Gin's heart released. "Ain't ya killin' me?"

Yama-jii shook his head. "No, fool that you are, perhaps this confinement will benefit you. Now, you will be escorted to a more permanent cell."

Several weeks later, Gin sat staring out of a small window. He alternated between doing that and pacing, for the most part. He had a pile of finished books and novels strewn about, nothing really occupied him for long.

A week into his sentence, he had been moved to a new cell for no reason, but after that, Gin had a view of a street. He wondered if it was just his imagination that he had seen a flash of orange hair that day.

Since the trial, he had not seen Rangiku at all, but he was not surprised. Right now, he was not even sure if he wanted to see her. The way he had lived his life, well, if he were her, he would not want to be anywhere near him. Gin had toyed with everyone around him and relished in causing as much mischief as he could. Then he had followed Aizen in search of power, or was it just something new to do? The things that had annoyed him about his life before he left seireitei just seemed trivial now.

Maybe paperwork was still as boring as he remembered it, but even so, he had bullied Izuru into doing most of it. Even so, his lieutenant had defended him. Izuru had come by twice a week, always bringing a puzzle or a novel. Izuru was one hell of a kid. Gin wondered if he ought to try finding Izuru a nice girl. With five years, he thought he could do it, even if he was locked up. Next time Izuru came—two days—Gin would have to see if Izuru fancied anyone.

Life was not the game Gin had always thought it was. Gin had played and cheated that game, going around in circles with it. It ended up with him being jailed and Rangiku hurt, because of him.

Gin turned away from the window with a sigh and leaned against the cold stones. He could only watch shinigami for so long. He missed wandering the streets at random, meandering the residential sections of seireitei and rukongai. Still, it was far better than the wall he had seen before, infinitely better. He was a people watcher, after all.

Footsteps fell against the stones in a soft click. Gin watched the hall intently. A flash of strawberry blond hit the light. His eyes widened; there was only one shinigami in all of seireitei with hair that color.

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Are you a neat freak or super messy? My desk is like a war zone, yet my drawers and closet and bookcase is perfectly organized. So I guess I'm weirdly both. Sunshine or rain? I like the rain, especially thunderstorms.


	100. Friendship

Only one more to go. I just can't believe it. Got a test tomorrow, so I'm going to sleep now, I think.

**Thanks **to: cy-grl, blackteaplease, SwirlzSmile, Stebbins -Stella-, Ayamichan34, Beautiful Nightmare07, pennyandpearl, capslocknanao, CrossroadsofLife, Blueberry Absinth, jeweliasands, Solar Kitty, Spocki, PunkRockHolly, and katiegirl101199

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**100. Friendship**

Rangiku had defended him; there was no way she could do otherwise. He was her best friend growing up, her lover after that. Then he had saved her life. She could never condemn him to death. After Gin's trial, however, Rangiku spoke to Yamamoto-san about giving Gin a window, but that had sent her straight to her room for three days.

When his sentenced had been announced, Rangiku had not left her room for three days. She just did not know what to think or do about it. She still did not know if he was her dear friend or someone else entirely.

The only way to find out was to visit him. It took her several weeks before she gathered up the courage to make her way down to the holding cells. First, they took haineko, then they searched her, and finally they sealed her reiatsu. Rangiku felt disoriented as she was shown through three different doors locked with both physical and kidou locks. It was almost dizzying being without her zanpakuto and her spiritual powers.

Gin's silver hair caught the light before anything else, but what startled her the most were his open eyes staring at her. His grin was absent. It made him look strange and a little alien, in a young, vulnerable sort of way.

Then Gin's grin was back, and he said, "Ya came ta see me."

Rangiku sat on a stool. Gin's eyes were still open, she wondered why. "Yeah, I guess so."

"Ya guess?" He said. "Did ya wander in here by accident? I dunno, I wouldn' wander anywhere them guards make me get rid o' my sword. But I guess I don' gotta worry 'bout that righ' now. But 'nuf 'bout me, how've you been? Yer wounds heal up okay?"

"Yeah, I'm fine. Nothing to worry about," she said. How did one find out who one was really talking to, especially when he was so good at games.

"Wha's wrong?"

Rangiku thought for a moment. Then she decided the only way she would get anywhere would be by being blunt. "I don't know who you are anymore."

"I don' either."

"What?"

"Ran-chan, I did a lotta bad things, an' I hurt a lotta people I shouldn' have. But I did some good things too," he said. "An' I guess this place'll gimme some time to work it all out. But I don' wanna be the bad guy no more. Wasn' that good o' one anyway, since I helped save the day, an' ya know I only like doing things I'm good at."

Rangiku watched him for a long while until she had something to say. "I'd better bring you some stuff to do so you don't get bored and break out of here and end up with a sentence twice as long."

Gin's eyes snapped open again to watch her; it was disconcerting seeing his eyes so much. "You'll come back ta see me again?"

"What are friends for?" She would give him another chance to prove himself. If he messed up this time, he would lose her, but if he played his cards right, she would become his friend again. She wanted to claim her childhood friend again.

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Anyone have ideas for GinxRan fics? what's the best thing you've ever eaten? Do you like to cook?


	101. Endings

And here's the last one. I can't believe this is the end, it makes me so sad. I'm going to miss you guys! But I'll still be working on Twist of Fate, and there may or may not be another GinxRan fic, I'm not sure yet. I have so much to do anymore, blah.

**Thanks** to: blackteaplease, CrossroadsofLife, Stebbins -Stella-, Beautiful Nightmare07, Blueberry Absinth, Ayamichan34, Solar Kitty, pennyandpearl, AppleDoodle, Renji's Girll, LilyGirl101, PunkRockHolly, katiegirl101199, and to all of my readers throughout this. All of you have been absolutely amazing and have made writing these drabbles just an amazing experience.

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**101. Endings**

It had been three years since he had been released from his cell, eight years since Kurosaki had killed Aizen. Between Izuru and Rangiku, he had had a visitor nearly every other day during his sentence, and they had worked hard to keep him entertained enough to keep him out of trouble. Afterwards, he still saw Rangiku twice a week, and he saw Izuru in the office daily. His life had so much more regularity somehow.

Today was even more important than when he was released from the cell, though he had been incredibly glad to walk farther than a few paces. However, today was much more than walking out in the open. Gin had received Shinsou from Yama-jii's hands, along with his captain's haori.

Eight years of perfect behavior, and Gin was finally a captain again. He would have to stay on his toes for a long time to keep his place, but he was home and glad to be there. Glad to be home.

Gin went straight from Yama-jii's office to ten's office where Rangiku would be napping. He had yet to put the haori on or secure his sword to his side. He snuck and slunk the entire way. He nudged Rangiku awake.

"Hey, why're you waking me up? S'nap time," Rangiku murmured, barely opening her eyes.

"I have somethin' ta show ya," Gin said. "Wake up."

Gin waited until Rangiku was sitting up before he secured Shinsou. He watched her eyes widen and had to force himself not to grin when he shrugged into his haori with a flourish.

"Gin, really?"

"Yep, yer lookin' at captain three."

Rangiku hugged him tightly and said, "I'm so glad."

There was one thing Gin did not have now. It was the one thing he wanted the most, naturally. He had been working towards it for eight years, and now that he was a captain, it was time to try.

Eventually, Rangiku let him go. He looked down at her. "So, I wanna ask ya somethin'."

"Like what?"

"So, I've been doin' good these past eight years, righ'? Real good?"

"Well, yeah, I mean you're a captain again."

"That ain't really what I mean," Gin said. The trouble was, he just was not good at this sort of thing. He hated talking about feelings and things. "Do ya think I've been a good friend?"

"I know who you are again," Rangiku said. "You're my friend from forever ago."

"Do ya think ya might ever consider bein' my girl again?"

"I think I'd like that."

"Ya sure?"

Rangiku kissed him. "Absolutely."

* * *

Well, this one has an ending that leads to new beginnings for Gin and Rangiku, ne? Hope you all enjoyed this as much as I enjoyed writing it.

101. Endings


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